LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



MERRILL'S SCHOOL-BOOK SERIES 



y 



NILES'S 



School History 



UNITED STATES 



FULLY ILLUSTRATED 




ST. PAUL, MINN. 

D. D. Merrill, Publisher 

1890 



PREFACE. 



In the preparation of this volume, m3' aim has been to include onlj' those events 
■which should be known to ever3' citizen, together with such other matter as might 
have a tendency to deepen impressions, to broaden the view, or add to the interest. 
I have tried to make all statements clear and accurate ; to treat the subject in such 
a manner as will leave the student with an abiding thirst for wider historical 
reading. 

So far as seemed possible, in a work of this grade, the relation of cause and effect 
has been kept in view, and it is believed that all who carefullj' stud3- these pages 
■will see that historj- is made up of related events. In speaking of the measures of 
political parties, and other organizations, I have endeavored to lift myself above 
prejudice ; to give plain, uncolored statements. 

Some space has been given to the men who dwelt here before us, but much more 
to the every-daj' life of our own people, in different sections of our country, and at 
different periods of our history. The great inventions of the last hundred j-ears 
have been noticed, and their marvelous influence more full}' traced than is usual in 
works of this class ; and care has been taken to convey the idea that the bloodless 
triumphs of peace are really as much a part of our country's liistorj- as the 
triumphs of war. 

To awaken the spirit of patriotism is regarded as one of the ends to be reached 
in the study of history. Keeping this fact in view, the stirring words of our great 
poets have been introduced, to supplement or round out the stories of patriotism 
told in simple prose. The heroes of the home, the hospital, the flood, and the field, 
men and women alike, have been placed side bj- side — bright examples for the 
. young to follow. • - 

It is believed that the use of the topics ptfT^ared for recitations and reviews, the 
test questions and exercises near the close of the book, will lead to the best results. 
Such a method of study and work as is here outlined places the pupil in the proper 
mental attitude, trains to self-reliance, gives a clear understanding of the subject, 
and a good command of language. 

SANFORD NILES. 

Minneapolis, Minn., Feb. 1st, 1890. 



Copyright, 1889, by D. D. Merrill. 



PRESS OF 

TRIBUNE J08 PRrNTING COMPANY, 

MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. 

(4) 






■s 



HINTS TO TEACHERS. 



How to Prepare the Lesson. — Pupils should be taught to think as they 
read ; to get ideas from the printed page ; to see the things spoken of in the 
text. For instance, if Lesson I. is to be prepared, the pupil, as he reads, 
should see the indented coast of Norway ; the Northmen, in their strange 
little shijjs, speeding over the sea to Iceland ; the ship of Biorn driven before 
the gale ; the low, w^ooded coast ; the settlers in Greenland eagerly listening 
to Biorn's tale ; Leif setting forth to find the land Biorn had seen ; Vinland, 
with its forests and vines; the little settlement of Northmen, and also the 
canals, walls, and other remains. When these mental pictures are clearly 
defined, and can be recalled in their proper order, the pupil has taken the 
most important step in the preparation of his lesson, althovigh he maj' not 
be able to repeat a line of the text. He has been getting ideas, not words, 
and this should be his first task whenever he attempts to prepare a lesson 
in histor3'. He should next think of the w^ords he will use to express his 
ideas. To tell what he has learned in the best w^ay must be his aim — his 
study. When he can do this, he is prepared for the recitation. 

The Recitation. — For the convenience of teachers, the topics treated in 
each chapter have been grouped at its close. They inay be written on the 
board or read from the book. When a topic is named, the pupil should be 
able to tell, in his ow^n words, \vhat he has learned under that head, from 
the text -book and from other sources. His recitation should be a reprodvic- 
tion, in his own, best language, of the ideas gained by study. Questions 
designed to stimulate thought are always in order, and should be freely 
used {See page 285). Questions which serve only to remind the pupil of the 
words of the book, which tend to make his recitation mere parrot-work, 
should be avoided. 

Geography and History. — GeograjDhy and history' go hand in hand. 
Geographical conditions often lie at the very foundation of histor3', and 
they should be studied by advanced classes. Why ^vere the early settle- 
ments on or near navigable w^aters ? Why did slavery become profitable in 
the South ? Why are the people of the Mississippi Valley largely engaged 
in grain-growing and stock-raising ? Why does life in the Rocky Mountain 
region differ from life in New^ England ? Why did the French find their way 
into the Mississippi Vallej' ? Questions like these will help even ordinary 
pupils to see how occupations, modes of living, the state of society, and even 
the laws of a people are largely determined by the conditions which pln^si- 
cal geograplu' imposes. 

Maps and Sketching: — The lesson should be studied with the proper map 
before the pupil fo'* easy and frequent reference. The large maps in an 

(5) 



The New Republic 
and Its People. 



6 HINTS TO TEACHERS. 

advanced geography' may sometimes prove more satisfactory than the 
small maps in a school history. Outline maps drawn on strong pajjer, to 
be filled in b\' pupils from day to day as the work advances, may be had at 
trifling cost, and are of great service. Maps indicating the routes of 
explorers, showing where early settlements were made, giving the bounda- 
ries of territorial acquisitions, illustrating military campaigns, etc., sh^ld 
be sketched b\' pupils while the recitation is in progress. 

Topical Reviews. — Pupils should be able to say something of each of the 
historic characters, and the historic places named in the lists prepared for 
topical reviews. When the general topics are reached, they should place 
on the board something like the following: 

SKELETON SUMMARY. 

Population and territory. 

Cities and villages. 

How the people traveled. 

Farm life. 

Mails and newspapers. 

Schools and school-masters. 

Ughts and fuel. 

How the people dressed. 

Slavery in the states. 

With this blackboard anah'sis before the class, the topics may be taken 
in order, the pupils telling what thej^ have learned in the best language they 
can command. It may sometimes be found best to require one pupil to go 
over the entire chapter, another pujnl taking the next, and so on. 

The Open-Book Method. — In some cases it will be a good plan to go 
over the history, chapter by chapter, w-ith the open book in the hands of 
the class. The several paragraphs of the chapter or lesson assigned may be 
read aloud bj' pupils, who should be made to feel cntirch- free to ask ques- 
tions; to relate what they have learned by reading in other books, pajjcrs, 
or magazines; to converse about points of special interest that may come 
up. This plan will enable teachers to see that different words are correctly 
pronounced ; that pupils know the meaning of words and expressions used 
in the text; that thej^ refer to the map whenever such reference seems neces- 
sary. Teachers should also direct pupils to other sources of information, 
test them b}^ well-conceived questions, and give the class many interesting 
facts gleaned in their wider reading. In this way teachers may make the 
subject broader and deeper than they find it in an3'^ school text-book, 
limited as it must be, in size and cost. Under no circumstances should the 
open-book method be allowed to degenerate into a mere reading lesson, 
without note or comment. The teacher who is full of his subject — a never- 
failing fountain of insjiiration — cannot fail to make this method a grand 
success. 



•See Chapter XXV., page 135. 



CONTENTS. 



Chapter. Page. 

I. A Legend of the Northmen, - - - - 9 

II. The Story of Cohimbus, . . - - 11 

III. Other Discoverers and Explorers, - - - 18 

IV. The Men Who Dwelt Here Before Us, - - - 26 
V. Claims of Different Nations — Settlements, - - 34 

VI. How Virginia Was Settled, - - - - 36 

VII. How the People Lived, - - - - - 43 

VIII. Settlement of New York, . ... 46 

IX. Life in New Amsterdam, - - - - - 49 

X. The New England Colonies, - - - - 52 

XL Other Events in New England, - - - - 62 

XII. Early Days in New England, - - - - 66 

XIII. New Jersey and the Quakers, - - - - 71 

XIV. William Penn and His Colony, . . . 71. 
XV. Delaware, or New Sweden — Mar3'land, - - - 77 

XVI. The Carolinas and Georgia, - - - - 80 

XVII. The French in America, - - - - - 85 

XVIIl. Three Indian Wars, ----- 88 

XIX. The French and Indian War, - - - - 92 

XX. Causes of the Revolution, - - - - 99 

XXI. The Beginning of the War, . - - - 105 

XXII. The Declaration of Independence, - - - HO 

XXIII. From Brandywine to Germantown, . . - 117 

XXIV. Articlesof Confederation — The Constitution, - 127 
XXV. The New Republic and Its People, - - - 135 

XXVI. Washington's Inauguration — 1789-1797, - - 141 

XXVII. John Adams' Administration — 1797-1801, - - 146 

XXVIII. Jefferson's Administration— 1801-1809, - - 148 

XXIX. Madison's Administration — 1809-1817, - - - 154 

XXX. Settling the Great Valley, - - - - 163 

XXXI. Monroe's Administration— 1817-1825, - - - 125 

XXXII. JohnOuincy Adams' Administration — 1825-1829, - 171 

XXXIII. AndrewJackson'sAdminis':ration— 1829-1837, - - 174 

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8 



CONTEXTS. 



Chapter. Page. 

XXXIV. Van Buren's .\c1ministration — 1837-1841, - - 183 

XXXV. Harrison and Tyler's Administration — 18+1-1845, - 186 

XXXVI. Polk's Administration — 1845-1849, - - 189 

XXXVII. Taylor and Fillmore's Administration — 1849-1853, - 194 

XXXVIII. Pierce's Administration — 1853-1857, - - - 196 

XXXIX. Buchanan's Administration — 1857-1861, - - 197 

XL. Lincoln's Administration — 1861-1865, - - 205 

XLI. Events of 1862, ----- 206 

XLII. Events of 1803, - - - _ . 227 

XLIII. Events of 1864, ----- 235 

XLIV. Events of 1865, - - . . . 242 

XLV. Other Matters Relating to the War, - - 246 

XLVI. Johnson's Administration — 1865-1869, - - 257 

XLVII. Grant's .\dministration — 1869-1877, - - - 260 

XLVIII. Hayes' Administration — 1877-1881, - - 265 

XLIX. Garfield and Arthur's Administration — 1881-1885, - 267 

L. Cleveland's Administration — 1885-1889, - - 269 

LI. Benjamin Harrison's Administration — 1889-1893, - 270 

LII. Growth of the Country, - - - 275 



NILES'S 



School History of the United States. 



PART FIRST. 
EARLY DISCOVERIES AND EXPLORATIONS. 



Chapter I. 




A NORTHMAN SHIP. 



A LEGEND OF THE NORTHMEN?. 

Long ago, the people of 
Norway, Sweden, and Den- 
mark, then called Northmen, 
were known as skillful and 
daring seamen. In their 
strange little ships, urged 
along by sails and oars, they 
visited all the coasts of Eu- 
rope, and often ventured far 
out upon the trackless ocean where the sailors of other 
lands had not been. Nearly a thousand years ago, Ice- 
land was discovered and settled by Northmen, who went 
forth from the bays and fiords {fiords') of Norway, and 
from Iceland a colony was sent to Greenland. 

Biorn and Leif the Lucky.— Among many legends of 
the Northmen, there is one that relates to Biorn {beern'), 
and to Leif (life) the Luck3% a son of Eric the Red, the 
first settler of Greenland. In sailing from Iceland to 

(9) 



10 VINLAND FORGOTTEN. 

Greenland in search of his father, Biom was driven to 
the southwest in a storm, until he came in sight of a 
low country covered with trees. Reaching Greenland at 
last, Biom told his stor}^ to the settlers. Leif then fitted 
out a vessel and sailed, with thirty-five men, to find this 
strange land. They finally came to a well-wooded coast 
where grapes and other wild fruits grew. The grapes 
were so abundant that Leif named the country Vinland. 
The Avinter was spent on the bank of a small lake, near 
the source of a river, and the weather seemed to them 
very warm and pleasant. This was about the j^ear 1000. 
The relatives of Leif made other voyages to explore the 
country, and a colony w^as finally planted in Vinland, 
which, we are told, prospered for many years. 

Where was Vinland?— Much more of the same sort is 
found in the legends of the Northmen, and we may well 
suppose that they w^ere the discoverers of America, the 
first white settlers of the new world; but as no certain 
traces of their settlement are known to remain, we may 
never find out whether their fair land of vines was Nova 
Scotia, Rhode Island, or some other region. 

In the basin of the Charles River, not far from Boston, ancient canals, wharves, 
dams, walls, pavements, forts, terraces, etc., have recently been found ; and it is 
claimed that these remains are memorials of the Northmen, who began a settlement 
here, A. D. 1007. It is also claimed that the site of a Norse city has been discovered 
near the junction of Stony Brook with Charles River; and a tower has been 
erected to mark the spot where, for three hundred and fifty years, the little city 
flourished. 

Vinland Forg-otten.— The Northmen themselves seem to 
have forgotten the very name of Vinland, and the dis- 
covery of Leif Avas never known to the people of Southern 
Europe, not one of whom dreamed of a land across the 
"Dark Sea," as the Atlantic was then called, until nearly 
five hundred vears later. 



THE STORY OF COLUMBUS. 



11 



Topics. — In your own words, tell w^hat you can about — 

1. The Northmen. 

2. Biorn, and Leif the Lucky. 

3. The countr}' called Vinland. 

4. The old stone mill, etc. 

5. Land beyond the "Dark Sea." 



Chapter II, 

THE STORY OF COLUMBUS. 

Birth and Early Life. — At Genoa, in Italy, about the 
year 1435, there was bom to a poor wool-comber, Domi- 
nico Colombo, a son, who was named 
" Christoforo Colombo " {creestofo ro 
Colombo), or Christopher Colum- 
bus, as we spell it in English. At 
an early age the lad showed a strong 
desire to go to sea, and the educa- 
tion which the slender means of his 
father allowed was such as would 
best fit him for a seafaring life. 
When about fourteen Columbus be- 
came a sailor. He made many voyages, and visited most 
of the seaports of the then known world. Sometimes the 
ships in which he sailed w^ere engaged in trade, and at 
other times they went forth to battle with piratical craft, 
common in those days. 

On one of those occasions, when the ship of Columbus was fighting a huge 
galley, and both vessels were in flames, it is said that Columbus threw himself into 
the sea, seized a floating oar, and saved his life by swimming to the shore, six 
miles away. 

Strang-e Notions.— Before the days of Columbus, most 
people believed that the earth was flat. The Atlantic, 




^1^ CHRISTOPHER COLUMBCS 



12 



THE KNOWN WOKLD. 



stretching awa3^ to the west, was, to them, an unknown 
waste of waters, filled with terrible monsters. The western 
coast of Africa be3^ond Cape Verde was unexplored, and 
frightful stories had been told of burning heat that parched 
the land of the Torrid Zone, and caused the waters of 
the deep to boil. As the Northern seas were covered with 
ice, little ^vas known of those regions. 

The Mariner's Compass and the Art of Printing*.— But 
a change was taking place. A few wise men had alread3^ 

learned the 
true form of 
the earth. 
The mariner's 
compass was 
coming into 
general use, 
and the sailor, 
no longer 
obliged to 
keep in sight 

of the coast, could steer boldly out to sea, guided by 
his needle of steel. Later, came the astrolabe, an instru- 
ment by which the mariner told his latitude, or distance 
from the equator, by the height of the sun or stars. In 
1450, when Columbus was fourteen j^ears old, the art 
of printing by movable tj^pes was invented, and books 
of travel began to appear and were read with great 
interest. All these things helped to make men better 
acquainted with the geography of the world, and expe- 
ditions were constantly going out to explore distant 
regions. The Portuguese were sending their fleets along 
the western coast of Africa, hoping to reach the Indies 
by that route, and other nations were not idle. 




MAP OF THE KNOWN WORLD. 

[The luirt of the world known when Columbus sailed is dark.] 



THE IDEA OF COLUMBUS, 13 

Trade with tlie East. — Long before the time of Columbus, Italy had established 
trade with Persia, Arabia, aud India ; spices, silks, gums, and perfumes were 
brought by caravans to ports on the Mediterranean and Black Seas, and taken 
thence by ship to Venice and Genoa, to be distributed over Western Europe. But 
traffic across the vast sandy deserts -was slow and costlj-, and merchants began to 
seek some better route. 

Stories of Travelers. — Travelers who had visited China, Japan, and other far- 
off lands in Eastern Asia, told of rulers who lived in palaces roolied with gold; 
of great cities whose merchandise was "silks, precious stones, and diverse per- 
fumes." These stories were read and believed, and how to reach those lands 
and open trade -with them became the great question. 

The Idea of Columbus.— After leaving school, Columbus 
continued to study geography and astronomy. He read 
books of travel, and was constantly drawing maps 
and charts. He himself sa3^s, "I had a hand sufficiently 
skilled and enough of knowledge to draw a globe v^rith 
the position of cities, mountains, rivers, and all parts 
that there were." He listened thoughtfully to stories told 
of huge reeds, of curiously carved wood, of the bodies of 
strange men found floating from the west, in the Atlan- 
tic, and became convinced that India might be reached 
by sailing westward. This idea grew so strong that he 
could not shake it off, and the thought of a voyage across 
the unknoAvn sea was in his mind at all times. 

Columbus Seeks Aid.— But Columbus was too poor to 
fit out ships of his own for such a voyage, and he had 
to seek aid. Some listened to his plans, and did all they 
could to help him; but others ridiculed him, regarding 
him as half-crazed. He first applied to his native city for 
ships, but he pleaded in vain. Portugal was then one 
of the chief commercial countries, and the aid of King 
Ferdinand was next sought. The king was inclined to 
favor Columbus, but he secreth^ sent a ship with another 
commander to see if there was land in the west. The 
commander and his sailors \vere soon discouraged, and 
returned to make a jest of the notions of Columbus. 



14. 



THE VOYAGE. 



Finding that he had been deceived b}- the king, Cohim- 
bus went to Spain to lay his plans before Ferdinand c.nd 
Isabella, king and queen. These monarchs were canying 
on a war with the Moors, and Columbns, poor and un- 
known, waited seven j'ears before he could obtain admis- 
sion to the court. At last, Queen Isabella heard his story, 
and favored his cause ; she offered to pledge her jewels for 
means to help him, but this was unnecessary, as a friend 

advanced the monej^ for her. 

After much delay, ships were 

made ready and crews placed 

on board. 

So, to a woman, the good queen, Isa- 
bella, Columbus was indebted for the 
means of carrying forward his plans 
and fulfilling his dreams. We are told 
that he spent eighteen j-ears in poverty, 
begging a chance to discover a world. 



The Voyage.— On Friday, 
August 3d, 1492, the little 
fleet of three ships, the Santa 
Maria {sahn' tah mahree'ah), 
on \vhich Columbus hoisted 

CABAVELS OF CHKISTOPUEK COLUMBUS. hlS flag ', thc Piuta {peCtl' 

(Afterane„gravin.pubhshedinl5S4] ^^^^ ^ ^^^ ^.^^ {nec' Uah) , 

commanded bj^ two brothers named Pinzon {pecn thone'), 
left the harbor of Palos {pah' loce) , in Spain, and turned 
their prows toward the w^aste of waters in which the 
sun seemed to set. They sailed by wa}' of the Canaries, 
where they stopped to repair one of the ships and take 
in a fresh supply of water. On Sunday, September 9th, 
they passed the last of these islands and steered west- 
ward across the unknown deep. 




THE DISCOVERY OF LAND. 15 

No sailor in our day would think of crossing the Atlantic in such ships. 
They were very small, and but one had a deck. The other two were open save 
at the bow and stem, where there were cabins for the officers and crew. Again 
and again the seamen lost heart, and they sometimes talked of throwing their 
commander overboard; but he strove to quiet their fears, and his lofty spirit 
disarmed them. 

Just at sunset, September 25th, the cry of "Land!" 
■went up from the Pint a, and there was great rejoicing; 
but when morning dawned no land was in sight, and 
all was gloom again. The supposed land was a cloud 
just rising above the sea. On sped the ships over the 
quiet waters, bearing the timid sailors farther and farther 
from home. At last, land birds came about the ships, 
green rock-weeds and a branch of thorn floated by, and 
there seemed an odor of land in the breeze. All that 
night Columbus stood on deck watching for land. 

The Discovery of Land. — In the morning they saw 
beautifully wooded shores, and birds of bright plumage 
hovered around. This was Friday, the 12th of October. 
Columbus made signals for the ships to anchor and the 
small boats to be armed and manned. He entered his 
own boat, clad in rich scarlet, and bearing in his hand 
the royal standard of Spain, The other boats bore ban- 
ners on which were a green cross and the initials, F. 
and I., with crowns above. Landing, the Spaniards took 
possession of the island in the name of their sovereigns, 
calling it San Salvador. 

Character of tlie Natives. — The natives of the island crowded on the beach to 
watch the ships, ^vhich they thought came up from the sea during the night. 
When the boats approached the shore and they saw that the men were white 
and strangely clad, they fled in fear to the woods; but, finding that they were 
not pursued, they slowlj' approached the Spaniards, prostrating themselves, and 
making signs of worship. The natives wore no clothing, and Columbus was 
much pleased with their simplicity and kindness. Supposing that he had reached 
the Indies, he named the inhabitants Indians. 

"So loving, so tractable, so peaceable, are the people," says Columbus in his 
journal, "that I declare to your Majesties there is not in the world a better 



16 



OTHER VOYAGES. 



nation, nor a better land. The3' love their neighbors as themselves ; and their 
discourse is ever svi'eet and gentle, and accompanied -with a smile; and though 
it is true that thej' are naked, yet their manners are decorous and praiseworthy." 
— Irving's Life of Columbus. 

Return to Spain — Other Voyag-es.— Columbus soon set 
sail, discovering Ctiba, Ha3'ti, and other West India islands. 
On his return to Spain he was received with great honors. 




(;uLr.Miii;s i.\ ikons. 



The sovereigns Avaited for him under a rich canopy, in 
a vast and splendid saloon. Here, seated on a throne, 
and attended by the dignitaries of their court, they 
listened to his story. Columbus made three more voy- 



DEATH OF COLUMBUS. 17 

ages, visiting Jamaica, Porto Rico, and other islands, and 
reaching the mainland of South America near the mouth 
of the Orinoco River (1498). 

Columbus in Irons.— The enemies of Columbus brought 
false charges against him, and, on his third voyage, 
when touching at Hispaniola — now called Hayti, they 
caused him to be arrested and sent home in irons. 

The caravels set sail, bearing off Columbus shackled like the vilest culprit, 
amidst the scoffs and shouts of a miscreant rabble, who took a brutal joy in 
heaping insults on his venerable head, and sent curses after him from the shores 
of the island he had so recently added to the civilized world. — Irving. 

It is said that Isabella wept when Columbus was 
brought before her in irons, and that she ordered his 
immediate release; but, though set free, he could get no 
redress for his wrongs, and had to bear a heavy burden 
of sorro\v during his fe^v remaining years. 

Death of Columbus. — In 1506, old, weary, and poor, Columbus passed away, 
ignorant of his discovery of a new world, but believing that he had found 
a new route to India. His body was deposited in a convent at Valladolid, 
Spain, from which place it was removed to Seville, w^here it remained for twenty- 
three years. It was then taken to Hispaniola, and finallj-, two hundred and sixty 
years later, was conveyed to the cathedral at Havana, where it still remains. 

Topics. — Tell what you can, in your own w^ords, about — 

1. The birth and early life of Columbus. 

2. Strange notions that prevailed. 

3. The mariner's compass, and art of printing. 

4. Trade with the East. 

5. Stories of travelers. 

6. The idea of Columbus. 

7. Columbus seeking aid. 

8. Vo\-age of Columbus. 

9. The discovery of land. 

10. Character of the natives. 

11. Return to Spain — Other voyages of Columbus. 

12. Columbus in irons — Death of Columbus. 



18 



VOYAGES OF THE CABOTS. 



Chapter III. 



OTHER DISCOVERERS AND EXPLORERS. 



Excitement in Europe.— When Columbus returned to 
Spain, the news of his discoveries spread over Europe, 
and people became almost wild with excitement. They 
talked of the splendors of the newly-found regions, whose 
river-sands, it was said, sparkled with gold ; whose inhabi- 
tants were decked with jewels, and dwelt in huts that 
glittered with pearls. 

Voyag'es of the Cabots. — England and France had 
missed the prize Columbus had brought to Spain, and they 
now set about securing what they 
could. John Cabot, a wealthy mer- 
chant of Bristol, England, obtained 
permission of Henry VII. to cruise 
about the world in his own ships, at 
his own expense. In the name of 
England, he was to take possession of 
any countries he might discover, and 
the Cabot family was to have control 
of the trade of such countries, allow- 
ing the king a share of the profits. Cabot and his son, 
Sebastian, set sail (1497), taking a westerly course, in 
the hope of reaching India. They landed on the coast 
of Labrador, and were greatly astonished when they 
beheld, instead of the warm country they were seeking, 
a region of ice and snow, "fit to be the home of the 
white bear." The Cabots had not found a new way to 
India, but they had discovered North America. On his 




A FAMOUS YEAR. 19 

return to England, John Cabot received much honor, 
and -was thenceforth called **The Great Admiral." He 
dressed in silk, and was followed by crowds of admirers. 
A year later (1498), Sebastian Cabot, then but a lit- 
tle more than twenty-one years of age, made another 
voyage, exploring the coast from 
Labrador to Marjdand, a distance 
of three thousand miles. During this 
voyage he became convinced that he 
had not reached India, but had dis- 
covered a new continent. 

Sebastian Cabot discovered a large island which 
he named New Found Land, and he noticed the im- 
mense number of cod-fish in the surounding -waters. 
His story of the fish w^as told over Europe, and 
within five or six years the fishermen of England and ~' 

France were gathering har^'ests of cod from the sea about Newfoundland. 
Although Cabot was called "The Great Seaman," and received high honors from 
kings, Queen Mary, of England, allowed the man who had given a continent to 
her country, to die in comparative povertj' and obscuritj', at the age of eighty 
years. 

A Famoas Year.— The year 1498 stands singularly famous in the annals of the 
sea. In May, Vasco da Gam a (ras'eo da gab'wah), of Portugal, reached Hisdostan 
by the way of the Cape of Good Hope ; in August, Columbus discovered the firm 
land of South America and the river Orinoco, which seemed to him to flow from 
some large empire, or perhaps from the terrestrial paradise itself; and, in the sum- 
mer, Cabot, the youngest of them all, made known to the world the coast-line 
of the present United States as far as the entrance to the Chesapeake. — Bancroft. 

Amerig-o Vespucci (ahmaree'go ves poof chee) .— Al- 
though Columbus is called the discoverer of America, it 
was named for Amerigo Vespucci, who visited South 
America in 1499. Vespucci landed on the coast of 
Venezuela, where he found a village of "forty-four houses, 
built on piles, shaped Hke bells, and having entrances 
like draw-bridges." He sailed along the coast for some 
distance, learning much about the natives, the strange 
animals, and plants. 



20 mSCOYERY OF THE PACIFIC. 

Vespucci w^rote an interesting account of his travels, 
which was pubhshed some years later (1507) by a Ger- 
man, who used the "word America in the title of his 
book. As the work was widely read, the name America 
came into general use, especially when South America Avas 
spoken of. In this way our country received its name.* 

Ponce de Leon {pone'tha da la own'). — A stor^^ of a 
"Fountain of Youth," concealed in the forests of America, 
had been told in Spain, and an aged warrior named 
Ponce de Leon, who had heard the tale, fitted out an 
expedition, hoping that he might find that wondrous 
fountain, bathe in its waters, and become young again. 
His search w^as vain, and he had to "bear the burden 
of his years;" but on Easter Sunday (1512), "Flowery 
Easter," as the Spaniards call it, he discovered a land 
of "forests and perpetual flowers," which he named 
Florida. After spending several weeks in exploring the 
coasts and islands, he returned home. 

Some years later, Ponce de Leon attempted to found a colony in the paradise 
he had discovered, but was attacked by Indians, many of his men were slain, 
and the rest were driven to their ships. Ponce de Leon himself was woimded 
by a poisoned arrow, and carried back to Cuba to die. 

Balboa {bahlho'ah) Discovers the Pacific— We have 
learned that Sebastian Cabot had concluded that America 
was not a part of Asia, but it remained for a Spaniard 
named Balboa to cross the Isthmus of Darien (1513), 
and gain the first sight of the vast ocean which sepa- 
rates America from Asia. Balboa knelt on the mountain 
top where he had his first view, and thanked God 
for the great discovery. He then descended to the shore, 
and, waving his sword over the water, took possession 
of the ocean for his sovereign, the king of Spain. 



•Some writers now maintain that the name America came from the word 
Amerique, an Indian name for a range of mountains in Central America. 



DISCOVERY OF THE ST. LAWRENCE. 21 

Magellan's Voyage Eoond the World.— People now knew that the land dis- 
covered was not a part of Asia, and voyages were made to find a way through 
or around it, so as to reach the wealth of the Indies by a shorter route than 
that discovered by Vasco da Gama. In 1519, Magellan, a Portuguese navigator, 
sailed from Spain in a southwest direction across the Atlantic. He passed 
through the strait which bears his name, and steered across the immense ocean, 
which he called the Pacific, on account of its smooth waters and steady winds. 
After much suffering, three of his five ships reached the Ladrones, and, a month 
later, the Philippine Islands, where Magellan lost his life in a battle with the 
natives. Only one of his ships, and fifteen of his two hundred and thirtj^-four 
men, reached Spain in safety, after a voyage of more than three years. This 
was the first voyage round the world. 

Verrazzani's Voyag-e.— Verrazzani {vcr rat sah' nee) , an 
Italian employed by the French, sailed (1524) in the ship 
Dolphin, by "way of Madeira, and after a long, rough 
voj^age reached the coast of North Carolina. He first 
passed some distance to the south, examining the coast 
careftilly; then, turning northward, followed the shore, 
stopping at many points. He entered New York harbor, 
spent some time at Newport trading with the Indians, 
and from this place sailed slowly along the coast of 
New England to Nova Scotia. For King Francis I., Ver- 
razzani took possession of the entire coast visited, giving 
it the name of New France. He wrote pleasant accounts 
of all he had seen, and the king was greatly pleased. 

Discovery of the St. Lawrence.— Jacques Cartier {zhak 
car te a^) of St. Malo, France, made a voyage to America 
(1534) in two ships fitted out for the purpose. For 
twenty days he sailed with favorable winds, under cloud- 
less skies, sighting the coast of Newfoundland on the 
10th of May. He passed to the northwest of the island, 
and finally entered a great gulf, which, a year later, 
when on a second voyage, was called St. Lawrence, in 
honor of the martyr of that name. The French king 
was proclaimed monarch of all the territory drained by 
the St. Lawrence River. 



22 



EXPEDITION OF DE SOTO. 



Expedition of De Soto (c/a so' to). — Ferdinand De Soto, 
who had been to Peru, and had returned with plunder 
taken from the natives of that country, fitted up an 
expedition to explore the new regions, and rob their 
inhabitants. Six hundred men, chosen from the youth 
of Spain, set sail in high hope. They had bloodhounds 




BURIAL OF nE SOTO. 



with w^hich to catch the Indians, and fetters to bind 
them. De Soto landed at Tampa Bay, Florida (1539), 
and the little army began its march through the wilder- 
ness. The Spaniards found the Indians warlike, and 
battles were fought with considerable loss. They wan- 
dered slowly northw^ard over the region now known as 
Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi, seeking a rich city, 



DISCOVERY OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 23 

in order that they might rob its palaces and temples. 
Some of the Indians were burned by their captors because 
they could not tell where gold might be found. 

At length, De Soto came to a large river, w^hich proved 
to be the Mississippi. Boats were built, and the stream 
w^as crossed. The Spaniards wandered for months in the 
region w^est of the river, enduring great hardships. At 
last, De Soto sickened and died, and in the silence of the 
night his body was lowered into the Mississippi. His 
follow^ers now^ desired to return to their native land. 
They slew their horses for meat, and plundered the Indians 
for bread, Avhile they built rude boats in w^hich to float 
down the river. Three years had passed, and only three 
hundred ragged, weary men were left. After reaching the 
Gulf they steered to the southwest, keeping near the 
shore, and finally reached a Spanish settlement at the 
River of Palms. 

Discovery of the Mississippi.— For a long time it was thought that De Soto 
was the discoverer of the Mississippi ; but it is now known that the honor belongs 
to a Spaniard, Alonzo de Pineda (da peen ah' dah) , who, in 1519, twenty-three 
years before De Soto saw it from the pine-clad bluffs of Tennessee, sailed along the 
coast of the Gulf of Mexico and entered the mouth of a mighty river. 

Ascending the river a distance of several leagues, Pineda passed no less than 
forty villages of natives on its banks. He spent some time in trading with the 
simple and friendly people, and w^rote a description of the river, and of other 
things w^hich he saw.* 

Voyag-e of Drake.— Sir Francis Drake had seen the 
waters of the Pacific Ocean from a mountain at Darien, 
and resolved to explore them. Under the patronage of 
his queen, Elizabeth, he set sail from Plymouth, England, 
in December, 1577; passed through the straits of Magel- 
lan, and, pushing northward, jjillaged the Spanish settle- 
ments on the western coast of South America, and robbed 
a Spanish galleon laden with gold and silver. He sailed 

•See Magazine of American History, July, 1889. 




^ATLANTIC DISCOVERIES 



Exercise.— Note the part of the continent reached by Enghsh explorers ; 
hy French ; by Spanish. On a jilobe, or maj), trace the general course of 
trade from India, Persia, and Arabia to ])orts of Italy. Trace the route 
of Columbus; Sebastian Cal)ot; Vcrrazzani ; Cartier; Ponce de Leon; De 
Soto; Vasco da Gama; Magellan; and Drake. 

(24) 



THE PACIFIC COAST. 25 

as far north as the southern boundary of the British 
possessions, where he encountered cold weather in June, 
and, turning back, entered San Francisco Bay, through 
the "Golden Gate." Drake remained on the coast a full 
month. He named the country New Albion, took formal 
possession of it, and erected a wooden post, on which 
was a copper plate, bearing an inscription, the portrait 
and arms of the queen, and of Drake himself. In return- 
ing to England, Drake crossed the Pacific to the Spice 
Islands, thence over the Indian Ocean, and by the way 
of the Cape of Good Hope reached home in 1580, He 
was the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe. 
The queen rewarded him w^ith knighthood. 

The Pacific Coast was first explored in 1543 by two Spaniards, Cabrello 
(ca breel'yo) and Ferelo {fara'Jo), who sailed as far north as Oregon. The ter- 
ritory went under the control of Spain, and a few^ small settlements were made 
by Catholic missionaries; but little was known of the country until it became 
a part of the United States (1848). 

Topics. — Tell what you can of — 

1. The excitement in Europe. 

2. Voyages of the Cabots. 

3. The famous year, 14.98. 

4. Amerigo Vespucci — America's name. 

5. Voyage of Ponce de Leon. 
G. Balboa's discovery. 

7. Alagellan's voyage round the world. 

8. Verrazzani's voyage. 

9. Discovery of the St. Lawrence. 

10. Expedition of De Soto. 

11. Discovery of the Mississippi. 

12. Voyage of Drake. 

13. The exploration of the Pacific coast. 



THE INDIANS. 



Chapter IV. 

THE MEN WHO DWELT HERE BEFORE US. 

The Indians. — The first explorers of this country found 
it inhabited by men ver^^ unlike the people of Europe, 

Asia, or Africa. 
They formed many 
tribes, bearing 
strange names, but 
all were known to 
the whites as In- 
dians. 

How They Lived. 
— Some tribes lived 
in huts, called wig- 
wams, and others 
had long bark 
houses supported 
by posts set in the 
ground. These 
houses were occu- 
pied by several fam- 
ilies. Many of the tribes raised patches of com, beans, 
pumpkins, and tobacco ; but others lived by hunting and 
fishing, and on such nuts, berries, and roots as grew wild. 

In 1696, an invading army found the maize fields of the Iroquois {e'roquab) 
extending a Itague and a half or two leagues from their villages. In 1779, the 
troops of Geneial Sullivan w^ere filled with amazement at their abundant stores 
of com, beans, and squashes, and at the old apple orchards which grcv around 
their settlements.— /'arA-man'*- Conspiracy of Pontine. 

Little clothing was worn during the summer, but in 
winter they wrapped themselves in skins, which they pre- 




AN INDIAN HUT. 



WHAT THE INDIANS MADE. 



27 



pared by smoking, instead of tanning in the manner com- 
mon with the whites. The women wore their hair long, 
but the men cut off all save the scalp -lock, which was 
retained as 
a matter of 
honor. Both 
sexes were 
fond of orna- 
ments, and 
the "braves" 
often tat- 
tooed their 
bodies, cov- 
ered their 
faces w^ith 
bright col- 
ors, and 
decked them- 
selves with 
gay feathers, 
shells, bear- 
claws, and 
beads. 

What They 
Made.— The 
Indians 
made mats 
of rushes, 
baskets of 
willow^, fish- 
hooks of bone, nets of hemp, hatchets and arrow-heads 
of stone, beads of shells, w^hich were sometimes strung 
and used as wampum, or money. Splints from the birch 




FAMILIES AND TRIBES f^ 



28 



INDIAN WOMEN AND CHILDREN. 



and the ash were woven into snow-shoes, on which they 
strode rapidly over the deep snow. 

Wrapped in furs and armed for hunting, 

With his mighty bow of ash-trcc, 

With his quiver full of arrows, 

With his mittens, Min-je-kah-wun, 

Into the vast and vacant forest, 

On his snow-shoes strode he forward. — Longfellow. 

The Indians \vere also very skillful in fashioning canoes 
from the bark of the birch tree, and from logs, which 

the}" hollowed out by 
means of fire. The lar- 
gest canoes were from 
t\venty to twenty-five 
feet in length, and each 
would can-}" a dozen, 
or more, full-grown 
Indians. 

Women and Chil- 
dren.— The Indian 
woman, orsquaw, \vas 
but little better than 
a slave to her hus- 
band, Avho thought it 
a disgrace to labor. 
She built his wigwam, 
gathered his fuel, plant- 
ed and hoed his corn, 
prepared his food, and 
bore all his heavy bur- 
dens. Her boy was 
taught to use the bow, 
to throw the tomahawk, to walk on vSnow-shoes; and 
he longed for the time when he could go to war and 




INDIAN UABE l.N CKADLE. 



INDIAN CHARACTER. 29 

bring home his first scalp. The girl learned to help her 
mother. 

War and War-Dances. — The different tribes were often 
at war, one with the other. They did not meet their 
enemies face to face in the open field, as is the custom 
of the whites, but came upon them by stealth, from the 
thick woods, the tall grass, or other cover. Before going 
to war they had a war-dance, which often occurred at 
night. Fires were lighted, and the warriors, daubed with 
paint, decked with feathers and other ornaments, would 
leap, brandish their weapons, and make the forest echo with 
their horrid yells. 

What They Obtained from the Whites.— The Indians 
had no horse, ox, or other beast of burden. The ponies, 
so common among them in later days, all came from 
stock brought over the sea by Europeans. The Indian 
soon learned to use the white man's gun and knife, and 
for them he gladly laid aside his old weapons. Tobacco 
was in common use for smoking, but not for chewing. 
Drunkenness was unknown among them until the "pale 
faces" gave them liquor and taught them to drink. 

Indian Character. — The Indian rarely spoke to his wife 
or children, and often spent days in the deepest gloom. 
He was very cruel to his enemies, but he seldom forgot 
his true friends, and often saved the life of his benefactor 
at the risk of his own. The door of his wigwam was open 
to any comer, and he would give up his own mat that a 
guest might rest thereon. He had great courage, self-con- 
trol, and patience. He would gain his end by craft, en- 
dure the greatest fatigue, and bear the most horrible tor- 
tures without showing a sign of pain. He believed in a 
"Great Spirit," and in "Happy Hunting Grounds" beyond 
the grave." 




(30) 



THE MOUND- BUILDERS. 



31 



The Villag"e Indians.— The Pueblo (pwa'blo), or Village, 
Indians of New Mexico are of a very different class. They 
live in buildings made of sun-dried brick and of stone, 
with apartments for hundreds, or even thousands of peo- 
ple. There are no doors in the lower story of their huge 

dwellings, and no 
one can enter with- 
out a ladder. 

As earlj' as 1530, wander- 
ing Spaniards found these 
Indians cultivating grain 
and vegetables, spinning 
cotton, and making the 
cloth into garments. Some 
of the Pueblos still occupy 
houses built by their ances- 
tors, centuries ago, 

Cliff-Dwellers.— In the ad- 
joining corners of Colorado, 
Utah, Arizona, and New 
Mexico are found many 
\vonderful ruins. Among 
them are huge dwellings in 
the faces and on the brows 
of immense cliffs. No hu- 
man voices have been heard in these homes for hun- 
dreds of years, and no one can tell who the Cliff- 
Dwellers were. 

The Mound-Builders.— The Indians 
were not the first inhabitants of this 
country. All over the Mississippi Val- 
ley, from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes, mounds 
of earth, with occasional walls of stone or brick, are 
found. Some of these mounds are circular, others, ob- 
long or irregular in shape. The animal mounds of Wis- 
consin are so called because they represent animals, 
such as the turtle, the lizard, the bear, the fox, the 
eagle, or the night-hawk. A mound in Adams County, 
Ohio, has the form of a snake, and is a thousand feet 




32 USES OF THE MOUNDS. 

long. Its tail is coiled, and its open mouth seems to hold 
something like an egg. St. Louis is often called "The 
Mound City," because its site was thickly covered with 
these ancient works. One mound which stood in the 
vicinity had a height of ninety feet, and an area of nearly 




MOUNDS AT MARIETTA, OHIO. 

six acres. There are mounds at Marietta, Ohio, covering 
about seventy-seven acres of ground. 

Uses of the Mounds.— The skeletons taken from many 
mounds show that they were burial places ; other mounds, 
of different form, containing no human remains, were 
probably used as forts; while some, it is supposed, were 
altars where animals w^ere sacrificed. Earthem kettles, 
cups, pipes, w^ater-jugs, and urns; stone axes, spades, 
pestles, and shuttles; copper chisels, knives, axes, and 



WHO THE MOUND - BUILDERS WERE. 33 

Spear-heads are among the interesting things dug from 
these ancient \vorks. 

Who Were the Mound-Builders?— Who were the men 
that heaped these countless mounds of earth ? Whose 
hands shaped and ornamented these vessels of clay ? What 
gardeners dug with these spades of stone? What women 
ground the golden com with these pestles? Whose fin- 
gers wove with these shuttles ? Who dug the copper from 
the mine and fashioned these knives and spears? What 
warriors fought behind these strong earthworks? What 
invading host stormed the \valls and overcame the strug- 
gling men \vithin? 

The Mound-Builders left no written records, and the 
wisest men are not able to answer these questions. Some 
suppose that the mounds were built by the ancestors of 
the Indians, but others are of a different opinion. The 
Indians themselves could give no account of these people. 
We know that they must have been far more industri- 
ous and skillful than the Indians of later daj's; that they 
had fixed homes, tilled the soil as a means of support, 
wove some of the garments w^hich they wore, and that 
they lived centuries ago. 

Topics. — Tell what you can about — 

I. THE INDIANS. 

1. How they lived — dwellings, food, clothing. 

2. What they made. 

3. Women and children. 

4. War and war-dances. 

5. What they obtained from the whites. 

6. Indian character. 

7. The Pueblos— Cliff-Dvvellers. 

II. THE- MOUND-BUILDEKS. 

1. The uses of the mounds. 
3 2. Who the Mound-Builders were. 



34 Cl-AIMS OF DIFFERENT NATIONS. 



PART SECOND. 

THE COLONIES. 



Chapter V. 

CLAIMS OF DIFFERENT NATIONS -SETTLEMENTS. 

We have learned that the earUest voyages to America 
were made by the Spaniards, the EngHsh, and the French. 
Each nation claimed all the land it had discovered. Re- 
membering Verrazzani and Cartier, the French spoke of 
the country as New France. The Spaniards called the 
mainland by the name Ponce de Leon gave to the pen- 
insula he had discovered. On some of the old maps all 
the northern part of North America is named New France, 
and the southern part, Florida. But the English had not 
forgotten the discoveries of the Cabots, and they named 
the w^hole countr}' lying between Florida and Canada, 
Virginia, in honor of their virgin queen, Elizabeth. In this 
way rival claims sprung up, and, as we shall see, caused 
a great deal of trouble. 

French Hug-uenots at Port Royal.— The Huguenots {hu 
genoz), or Protestants, of France, began a settlement at 
Port Royal, South Carolina, in 1562. The little colony, 
numbering less than thirty, built a fort, w^hich they named 
Carolus, in honor of King Charles IX. They did not 
know how to till the soil, and suffered greatly for want 
of food. Many became homesick, and at last all sailed 
for their native land in a small, rude ship, built with their 
own hands. Two 3-ears later, the Huguenots built a fort 



COMING OF THE ENGLISH. 



35 



and established a small settlement on the banks of the St. 
Johns River, Florida. 

The Spaniards at St. Augustine.— In 1565, the Spaniards 
made a settlement in Florida, which they called St. Augus- 
tine, in honor of the greatest of church fathers, on whose 
day, August 28th, the Spanish fleet, under Menendez {ma 
nen deth), arrived oif the coast with fifteen hundred soldiers 
and colonists on board. As soon as they could do so, the 
Spaniards sent a strong force against the Huguenot settle- 
ment on the St. Johns, and cruelly destroyed it, claiming 
the land as their own. 



The ruins of the quaint old town of St. Augustine, and of its fort, San Marco, 
are seen to this day. The fort was built of shell-rock, procured from quarries 
in a neighboring island ; and hxjndreds of Indian slaves were employed in its con- 
struction. It stood the attack of Indian, French, and English foes. 

Coming" of the Eng-lish. — Sir Walter Raleigh {rawle), a 
learned Englishman, received a grant of a large tract 
of land, and spent a fortune in try- 
ing to establish colonies in the New 
World. He sent (1585) a hundred per- 
sons to Roanoke Island, on what is 
no^v the coast of North Carolina. 
Instead of providing food, the men 
spent most of their time looking for 
gold, and after a year of distress 
were taken back to England. Two 
years later, a much larger colony was 
planted on the same island. At first, everything prom- 
ised \vell, but when their governor returned, after a long 
visit to England, not a settler could be found, and no 
one knows the fate of the colony. In this settlement the 
first child of English parents was bom. They named her 
Virginia Dare. 




SIR ^^ \1 Tt U H \] EIOH I 

' ^ ^ Jfi 



36 HOW \^RGINIA WAS SETTLED. 

Some years before, Sir Humphrey Gilbert, a half-brother of Sir Walter Raleigh, 
had crossed the Atlantic for the purpose of planting a colony in the New World. 
Landing on the island of Newfoundland, his men became ungovernable, and he 
determined to return to England. He had lost three of the five vessels with which 
he set out, and went on board the smaller of the two which remained, a vessel 
of only ten tons burden. He was advised to take the larger, but refused, saying; 
"Be of good cheer, my friends; it is as near to heaven by sea as by land." One 
night the little craft disappeared, and no one ever again saw her or a soul of her 
crew (1583). 

London and Plymouth Companies.— In April, 1606, 
James I., king of England, granted a charter to two 
companies, giving them the whole continent, from the 
34th to the 45th parallel, including the sea-coast from 
South Carolina to New Brunswick. The Plymouth com- 
pany was to take the northern half, and the London 
company the southern, but the nearest settlements of the 
two companies were to be a hundred miles apart. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. Rival claims. 

2. The Huguenots at Port Royal. 

3. The Spaniards at St. Augustine. 

4. Sir Walter Raleigh's settlements. 

5. London and Ph-mouth companies. 



Chapter VI. 

HOW VIRGINIA WAS SETTLED. 

The Men Who Came. — The London company sent out 
a colony which consisted of one hundred and five men, 
without women or children. One-half of the men were 
gentlemen who had lost their fortunes, some were trades- 
men; others, footmen, a few only were farmers or me- 
chanics. Such men were poorly fitted for the hardships 
of a new country, where the land had to be cleared of its 
heavy timber, crops cultivated for food, and houses built 
of trees still growing in the forest. 



SETTLEMENT OF JAMESTOWN. 



37 



Captain John Smith.— But there was one man among them, not yet thirty years 
old, who was highly gifted in mind and strong in body. His name was John 
Smith. He was born in England, and had led a strange life. From boyhood he 

had been a soldier, roaming over the \vorld. Once he 

w^as thrown overboard by his fellow passengers, and 
saved his life by swimming to an island. He was in 
battles against the Turks; was taken prisoner; sold 
as a slave, and freed bj' a mistress w-ho pitied him. 
Smith finally became the leader of the colony, and 
saved it from failure. 




Settlement of Jamestown. — The col- 
ony sailed in three small vessels, un- 
der Captain Newport. It reached James 
River, May 13th, 1607, and estab- 
lished the first permanent English set- 
tlement in America, giving it the name Jamestown, in 
honor of their king. Many of the colonists did not know- 
how to w^ork, and but few were really industrious. Some 
wandered about in search of gold, and thej^ even loaded 
one of their ships with a glittering substance, "fool's 
gold," which they mistook for precious ore. 

Scarcity of Food. — After a time food became scarce, 
and the colonists had to live on a little porridge made 
of worm-eaten barley or wheat. The poor food, the river 
w^ater w^hich they drank, and the hot sun soon caused 
much sickness, and before the close of summer every sec- 
ond man had died. In the autumn wdld fowd and game 
became abundant, and bread w^as made of the little wheat 
gathered from their late spring sowing. 

Captain Smith was never idle. He taught the people to chop, to build cabins, 
to prepare the ground for planting. He also drilled them as soldiers, and at night 
every man had to take his turn in watching for Indians, who were always pro\vl- 
ing around. 

Homes of the Settlers. — Smith has told us how the settlers lived. He says: 
"When I first went to Virginia, I well remember we did hang an awning to three 
or four trees to shadow us from the sun ; our walls were rails of wood ; our seats, 
•nnhewed trees, till we cut planks; our pulpit a bar of w^ood nailed to two neigh- 
boring trees In foul weather we shifted into an old rotten tent, for we had few 



38 smith's adventures. 

better; and this came by way of adventure for new. This was also our church 
until we built a homely thing like a barn, set up on crotches, covered with rafts, 
sedge, and earth, as were also the walls. The best of our houses were of like curi- 
osity, but for the most part of far worse workmanship, that could neither well 
defend wind nor rain." 

Smith's Adventures.— Smith often sailed in his Httle 
boat, the Discovery, along the bays and streams, to ex- 
plore the country, and to trade with the Indians, to vv^hom 
he gave beads and other trinkets for com, to be used 
as food. On one of his trips, two of Smith's men were 
killed by the Indians, and he was made prisoner and 
led from place to place. Powhatan, the chief, said that 
Smith must be put to death; but the chief's daughter, 
Pocahontas, a girl but twelve years of age, begged that 
he might live, and Smith's life was spared. * 

Pocahontas, the little Indian maiden, became the true friend of the whites, bring- 
ing thuin food, and warning them of danger. She grew to be a beautiful woman, 
was baptized at the church in Jamestown, from a pine trough used as a font, and 
was married to a planter, named John Rolfe, "an honest and discreet young 
Englishman," who took her to England, where she was beloved by all. "She did 
not only accustom herself to civilized life, but carried herself as the daughter of a 
king." Pocahontas died soon after, leaving a son, from whom some of the first 
families of Virginia claim descent 

When Smith returned from captivity, the colony was 
near starvation. Only thirty -eight persons were left, and 
they were getting ready to go back to the old countr5^ 
Having confidence in Smith, they again went to work. 
Other settlers were sent over from England, but most 
of them were "vagabond gentlemen," who were no help 
to the colony. In 1609, Smith went to England to be 
cured of a wound caused by an explosion of powder. 
He never returned to Virginia. 

The Starving- Time.— At the time Smith left, there were 
nearly five hundred settlers. They soon had trouble with 
the Indians, and as they could neither buy food of them 

•This pleasant story is now regarded as fiction. 



THE STARVING TIME. 



39 




lOJO c 0\n '^ 




^//V//' abroad for 

game, for fear 

of being killed, 

/// they were forced 

to eat rats, dogs, 

snakes, toads, and 

V\\\ ^ ^ \ 

'^s^\i^* even the bodies of 
the dead, in order 
to save life. In six 
months but sixty 
settlers remained, and 
these were about to re- 
turn to England. As they 
hariestoit/;///^--" Stepped luto the boat, we are 
told that, "None dropped a tear, 



^-^"nah.,733;y-/ ^^^ ^jq^c had enjoyed one day of hap 
rfliljlj///^ piness." Near the mouth of the river 
''/Ill/Ill ^jjgy jnet a ship with provisions and a new 
governor, Lord Delaware, on board. 

This changed their sorrow to joy, and 

all turned back to their deserted homes, saying, "God wtII 
raise our state." 

Better Days.— Better times followed. A new charter 
was obtained from the king, and the settlers, instead 




40 INTRODUCTION OF SLAVERY. 

of having everj'thing in common, were allowed to own 
and till farms, each for himself, and the people were 
given a voice in making their own laws. This was really 
the beginning of free government in America. A better 
class of men now began to come from the Old "World, 
and settlements were formed along the banks of the James, 
as high up as the present site of Richmond. 

Cultivation of Tobacco.— The early explorers of Vir- 
ginia found tobacco in general use among the Indians. 
It soon made its way to Europe, and, though King 
James \vrote against it, and the Pope strongly con- 
demned the practice of smoking, the demand for the 
"vile v^'eed" continued to increase, and the planters soon 
found its cultivation so profitable that little attention 
was given to other industries. 

Tobacco was grown on the plantations, in the squares, gardens, and streets. 
It came to be used in place of money, and the salaries of clergymen were paid in it, 
the first four receiving two hundred pounds a ^-ear each. A cargo of respectable 
young ^vomen was sent over, and whoever married one of them had to pay one 
hundred and twenty pounds, the cost of the voyage. 

Introduction of Slavery.— In 1619, a Dutch vessel sailed 
up the river to the plantations with twenty negroes, 
who were offered at auction, and eagerly bought by the 
wealthier planters, to be held as slaves for life. This was 
the beginning of African slavery in our countr3\ The ne- 
groes became field hands and mechanics, and as tobacco 
grov^'ing by slave labor Avas found to be xerj profitable, 
others were brought over from time to time to stock the 
plantations. 

Trouble with the Indians.— Under better laws the colony 
grew more and more prosperous, until, in 1622, there 
were four thousand white inhabitants, and plantations 
extended along the James for one hundred and fifty miles, 
and far back from the river, on other streams. But the 



VIRGINIA A ROYAL PROVINCE. 



41 



Indians, seeing how rapidly their lands were being taken 
from them, concluded to kill all the settlers. Then fol- 
lowed a bloody war, in which the whites at last con- 
quered. Peace continued until 1644, 
when there was another struggle, in 
w^hich the red men were driven far 
awav from their land, never to return 





KNTKOULCllON Ot hLA\ LIi\ 



Virg"inla a Royal 
Province.— King James 
took awa}^ the charter 
of the London company 
(1624), and made Vir- 
ginia a royal province, promising the people all the lib- 
erty they then enjoyed. But many of the governors op- 
pressed the colonists, and the people of the mother country 
were not willing to give them their rights, though the 



42 bacon's rebellion. 

privilege of passing laws in their assembly was not sur- 
rendered. Things grew worse, and worse, until a governor 
by the name of Berkeley, w^ho had been very tyrannical, 
refused to let the colonists defend themselves against the 
Indians. 

Bacon's Rebellion.— The colonists then took matters 
into their own hands, and, under the leadership of a 
young planter, named Nathaniel Bacon, sought to redress 
their wrongs. Bacon had almost succeeded, w^hen he sud- 
denly died, and Berkeley, coming into pow^er again, hanged 
twenty of the leaders Avho had opposed him. Berkeley 
was recalled by the king, Charles II., who said, "The old 
fool has taken more lives in that naked country than I 
did for the murder of m\^ father." 

Abundance. — For the next hundred years, in spite of 
many hard rulers and bad laws, the colon3' continued to 
prosper and increase in population. 

Abundance gushed from the earth for all. The morasses were alive with 
■water- fowl ; the creeks abounded with oj'sters, heaped together in large quanti- 
ties; the rivers ^verc alive \vith fish; the forests ^vere nimble with game; the 
woods rustled with coveys of quail and wild turkey, while they rung with the 
merry notes of singing birds; and hogs, swarming like vermin, ran at large in 
troops. It was the best poor man's country in the world. — Bancroft. 

Topics. — Tell what you can about — 

1. The men vrho came. 

2. Captain John Smith. 

3. Settlement of Jamestown. 

4. Scarcity of food — Homes of settlers. 

5. Smith's adventures. 

6. Pocahontas, the Indian maiden. 

7. The starving time — Better days. 

8. The cultivation of tobacco. 

9. Introduction of slavery. 

10. Trouble with tiic Indians. 

11. Virginia a royal province. 

12. Bacon's rebellion — .\bundancc. 



HOW THE PEOPLE LIVED. 43 



Chapter VII. 

HOW THE PEOPLE LIVED. 

Homes. — As most of the jDcople of Virginia were planters, 
Avhose estates lay along the water-courses and inlets, boats 
could be loaded with tobacco, or deliver goods at almost 
any point, and as very little manufacturing was done, few 
villages sprung up. For the most part, gentlemen lived on 
plantations containing thousands of acres of land, tilled by 
slaves. Many of the planters' houses were built of brick 
brought across the sea, and the furniture was in some 
cases very rich and costly. The slaves lived in wooden 
cabins, at a little distance from the mansion of their master. 
Each cabin had its garden and poultry yard, and black 
children, "pickaninnies," were seen everywhere in the "ne- 
gro quarters." 

Some black Dinah or Chloe attended to the cooking, and 
dishes of bacon, wild fowl, or other game, with hot biscuit 
and hoe-cake, or corn-bread, were served on the planter's 
table. 

Schools. — Slaves were not taught to read or write, and, 
as there were no free schools, the children of the poor 
whites grew up almost as ignorant as the children of the 
blacks. A Virginia governor said, "I thank God there are 
no free schools, nor printing-presses, and I hope we shall 
not have them these hundred 3^ears " (1671). The wealthy 
sometimes sent their children abroad to be educated, and 
a few private schools were established at home. William 
and Mary College was founded in 1692, the second in 
America. It is no lono^er in existence. 



44- MODES OF TRAVEL. 

Sports. — As there was little education, neither books nor 
papers were used to while away the weary hours, and 
the people sought pleasure in horse-racing, fox-hunting, 
bull-baiting, or cock-fighting, and these sports became very 
common. 

Relig'ion. — The laws relating to religion were quite se- 
vere. In 1662, the British parliament passed an act re- 
quiring uniformitj^ in public worship throughout the realm. 
At the same time, the Church of England was made the 
established church in Virginia by a vote of the assembly, 
and all other sects were forbidden to preach the gospel, on 
pain of banishment from the colony. On ever3^ large plan- 
tation a room was set apart for w^orship, and clergj-men 
w^ere fined for neglect of duty. At one time, every white 
male over sixteen had to pay, each \'ear, ten pounds of 
tobacco and one bushel of early ripened corn for the sup- 
port of the church. People were punished for stajang 
away from meeting. Quakers and Catholics were not 
allowed to settle in the colon^^ There were laws against 
swearing and scolding, and for some offenses, women as 
well as men were publicly whipped, or made to stand at 
the church door on the Sabbath, with sheets thrown over 
them. 

Modes of Travel. — At first, mere foot-paths were opened 
through the forest, and, away from the large streams, 
nearh^ ever3'body traveled on horseback. Some of the 
wealthiest planters on the Potomac kept beautiful barges, 
brought over from England, in which they visited neigh- 
boring estates, negroes in uniform acting as rowers. Every 
planter's house was open to friends and strangers alike. 
"The doors of citizens were open to all decent travelers, 
and shut against none," and one might make a long jour- 
ney Avith little expense. 



ARTICLES OF LUXURY 



45 



Articles of Luxury. — The mistress of the mansion did 
not labor with her own hands, but she w^as mindful of the 
wants of her black servants, who came and went at her 
bidding. Her articles of Itixurj", and many of her comforts, 
were brought direct from England in ships that sailed up 




EARLY DAYS JN THK SOUTH — MY LADY'S VISIT. 

the large rivers. ThcA^ were paid for in tobacco, which 
was planted, hoed, gathered, and packed by slaves. 

Dress and Ceremony. — There was a good deal of show and ceremonj' on public 
occasions. One of the early governors, whenever he attended church, did so 
with a formality thus described by his secretarj-: "Every Sundaj-, when the 
lord-governor and captain-general goeth to church, he is accompanied by all the 
counselors, captains, other officers, and all the gentlemen, with a guard of Hal- 



46 SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 

berdiers in his lordship's livery (fair red cloaks), to the number of fiftj-, on each 
side and behind him. His lordship hath his seat in the Quoir, in a great velvet 
chair, with a cloth, ^vith a velvet cushion spread before him, on which he kneel- 
eth ; and on each side sit the council, captains, and officers, each in their place; 
and, when he retumeth home again, he is waited on to his house in the same 
manner." — HiggiDSon. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. The homes of the peo])le. 
The table — articles of food. 



Schools — printing i)resscs. 

Sports — horse-raciiig — fo.\-hnnting. 

Religion — Church of England. 

Modes of travel — horse-back riding. 

Articles of luxury. 

Dress and ceremony on jjublic occasions. 



Chapter VIII. 

SETTLEMENT OF NEW YORK. 

Coming of the Dutch.— Early in September, 1609, a bold 
English sailor, Henr}- Hudson, employed by the Dutch East 
India Company, cast the anchor of his ship, the Half Moon, 
not far from what is now called Sandy Hook. A few days 
later, he entered the beautiful stream which now bears his 
name, and explored it as far up as the place where Albany 
now stands. No other white man had seen the Hudson 
River, and its banks are described by the old sailor as 
"pleasant with grass, and flowers, and goodly trees." 

As Hudson sailed up the river, the Indians came out to the ship in canoes, 
bringing furs, oysters, beans, grapes, and pumpkins, for which they \vere given 
beads, knives, and hatchets. At one place they invited Hudson ashore, where he 
partook of a feast of fat-dog which had been killed and cooked for the occasion. 
The Indians considered this a great treat. 

Hudson had made two voyages in search of a northwest passage to India, 
and was on a third voyage when he discovered the Hudson River. His fourth 
voyage was made a j'ear later. While in Hudson Bay a mutiny occurred among 



THE PATROONS. 47 

his men, and he, with eight others, was put into an open hoat and left to perish. 
" The gloomy waste of waters which bears his name is his tomb and his monu- 
ment." 

New Amsterdam. — After Hudson's discovery, Holland 
claimed all the land along the river, giving it the name of 
New Netherlands. In 1614, some sailors, whose small ship, 
the Tiger, with a cargo of bear-skins, had been burned, put 
up a log fort and a few huts on Manhattan Island, in 
w^hich they spent the winter buying furs. This small set- 
tlement was the beginning of New Amsterdam, and also 
of the great city of New York. Ten years later, the first 
Dutch governor, Peter Minuet, bought the island of Man- 
hattan for about twenty-four dollars, paying for it in 
trinkets. Trading posts were soon established along the 
river, and the Dutch grew rich by exchanging blankets, 
beads, guns, and rum for furs, which the Indians obtained 
by trapping. 

The Patroons. — To any one who would found a colony 
of not less than fifty persons, the Dutch East India Com- 
pany offered a tract of land sixteen miles in length, border- 
ing on any stream, and extending back as far as might be 
desired. The company further agreed to supply these large 
landholders, called patroons, with negro slaves, to be 
imported from Guinea. The patroons w^ere to pay the 
Indians for their lands ; and they were to have authority 
over their own estates, without regard to the colonial 
government. 

To supply the fifty persons required for each of these large estates, poor 
Germans were often brought over by sea captains, -who received their passage 
money from the patroons. The poor men were obliged to repay the patroons by 
serving them a certain number of years. Some of the descendants of these labor- 
ers are now among the wealthiest people of New York. 

Dutch Governors. — The governors of the colony were 
sent from Holland. One of them, b3^ the name of Kieft, 



48 



NEW AMSTERDAM BECOMES NEW YORK. 



was very cruel to the Indians, who, in revenge for their 
wrongs, made the forests echo with their war-whoops, and 
no home or hamlet was safe from their attacks. For this 
folly the colonists sent the governor home, but his ship 
was wrecked on the coast of Wales and Kieft perished. 

For twenty years after this, Peter Stuyvesant (sti'' ve 
zant), the last and best of the four Dutch governors, ruled. 
Peter had been a soldier, and had lost 
a leg in the wars. He was a brave 
and true-hearted man, but w^as very 
despotic, and was called Headstrong 
Peter. Peace ^vas made with the In- 
dians, many settlers came over from 
Europe, and the cotmtry prospered. 
The persecuted Huguenots from France, 
the Waldenses from Italy, the Calvin- 
ists from Switzerland, and the hated 
Jew found homes in the colony, and were allowed to wor- 
ship as they chose. 

New Amsterdam Becomes New York. — But a change now 
came. We have learned that the English claimed all the 
land from South Carolina to New Brunswick. Charles 
II. had not forgotten this claim, and he gave his brother, 
the Duke of York, large tracts of land, including all the 
Dutch possessions, and the duke made haste to secure this 
territory. An English fleet was fitted out, and sailed for 
New Amsterdam, in whose harbor it appeared, Augtist, 
1664. As it was a time of peace, the brave old governor 
was taken by surprise, but declared he would hold the 
place at any cost. However, he was compelled to surren- 
der, and the English flag soon floated over the fort and 
town. On the 8th of September the name of the colony 
was changed to New York, in honor of the new proprietor. 




LIFE IN NEW AMSTERDAM. 49 

So the little town of fifteen hundred souls, with all the 
other Dutch settlements, passed under English rule. Gov- 
ernors were appointed, some of whom ruled badly; but the 
people were allowed to hold an assembly, in order to make 
their own laws, and, after a time, they obtained a charter 
(1683). New York remained an English colony, but Dutch 
customs prevailed for a long time. The Dutch language 
was spoken, and there were Dutch schools, \vhere a little 
English was taught. Kings College, now Columbia, was 
founded in 1754. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. The coming of the Dutch. 

2. New Amsterdam. 

3. The patroons. 

4. Dutch governors. 

5. How New Amsterdam became New York. 



Chapter IX. 

LIFE IN NEW AMSTERDAM. 

Dwelling's and Furniture.— The best houses in New Am- 
sterdam were built of wood, wath gables of small, colored 
brick, made in Holland. The houses had many gables, 
doors, windows, and porches, and large iron letters were 
often placed on the front to show \vhen they were built. 
No dwelling was quite complete without a weather-cock 
at its peak to show the direction of the wind. The furni- 
ture was plain and solid, and the large cupboards con- 
tained china and silverware brought from the Old World, 
and handed down in the family from generation to gener- 
ation. There were large, open fire-places, around which 
old and young gathered in winter, to tell stories, play 
games, and enjoy other good cheer. 



50 



THRIFTY HOUSEWIVES. 



Thrifty Housewives. — The housewife scoured the floors and 
sprinkled them with clean white sand, in which she traced 
figures with her broom. Pine knots and home-made tal- 
low candles Avere used for light. 
Ever}' house had its spinning-wheel, 
its reel, and loom 
Mothers and 
daugh- ,,■» 
ters 




A DUTCn HOUSEHOLD. 



spun and wove, and 
a large store of linen 
was always kept in the old oaken chest. The Dutch were 
good livers, and their tables were often graced with huge 
apple-pies, baked in brick ovens, saucers of preserved peaches 



SCHOOL -MASTERS AND MINISTERS. 51 

and pears, and large dishes of "olykocks," or doughnuts. 
Mush, or bread with buttermilk, was a common supper. 

Dress. — The women wore white muslin caps, and kept 
the hair smooth with pomatum or tallow. Gayly colored 
petticoats, which came just below^ the knee, Tvith red or 
green woolen stockings of their own knitting, and high- 
heeled shoes, with silver buckles, were "all the fashion." 
Every woman who went out on a visit carried a work-bag, 
with scissors and pin-cushion. The men wore large linsey- 
woolsey coats, with broad skirts, and large brass or silver 
buttons. Several pairs of short breeches \vere worn, one 
over another, with long stockings, and great buckles at the 
knees and on the shoes. The hair was allowed to grow 
long, and sometimes it was done up in an eel-skin cue, 
v^hich hung behind. 

School-Masters and Ministers.— The school-masters of 
those da^'S visited the sick, acted as clerks, and led the 
singing at church. Frequenth^ the ministers, or dominies, 
were paid in beaver skins, or in wampum ; and we read 
of one w^ho received one hundred and fifty skins for a year's 
preaching. Many festivals were observed, and we may 
thank the Dutch for "Santa Claus," for colored eggs at 
Easter, and for New Year's calls. 

Trade. — The people of New Amsterdam built their own 
ships, and sent off cargoes of fur, tobacco, timber, staves, 
and tar, for which they received much money and many 
needed things from lands beyond the sea. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. Dwellings. 

2. Housewives. 

3. Dress. 

4. School-masters and ministers. 

5. Trade. 



52 OS BOARD THK MAY FLOWER. 



Chapter X. 

THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 
MASSACHUSETTS. 

Coming" of the Pilgrims.— Near the northern boundary 
of Nottinghamshire, England, is the little village of Scrooby. 
Here, a long time ago, there dwelt a number of persons 
who did not believe in the doctrines and ceremonies of the 
Established Church, and wished to worship God in their 
own way. This they could not do openly, and they held 
their meetings in secret, but were discovered, and their 
lives were made very bitter by jjersecution. 

At last, they resolved to seek freedom in Holland, where 
they arrived after many trials. Eleven happy and pros- 
perous years were spent in that land, but they thought it 
best to make a home in the New World, where they could 
dwell apart, and found a state in which they might think 
and worship as they chose. 

On Board the Mayflower. — "Amid tears, and pra^^ers, 
and fond farewells," as many as could be provided with 
quarters, set sail in the Speedwell, for Southampton, Eng- 
land, where they were joined by other Pilgrims in the May- 
flower, a ship of but one hundred and sixty tons. The 
Speedwell proving unsafe, w^as left at Plymouth, and about 
one hundred souls, men, women, and children, embarked in 
the Mayflower. 

The weather was cold and stormy, and the voyage long, 
so that they did not drop anchor in Cape Cod Bay imtil 
the 11th of November. They spent a month in looking 



FORMING A GOVERNMENT. 53 

for a safe harbor, and a good place for settlement. Finally, 
they came to a place which they named Plymouth, in mem- 
ory of the last English port from which they had sailed, 
and here, on the 21st day of December, 1620, the Pilgrims 
landed, a lass named Mary Chilton being the first to step 
from the boat to a large boulder, since called "Plymouth 
Rock." 

"The breaking waves dashed high 
On a stern and rock-bound coast, 
And the woods against a stormy sky 
Their giant branches tossed. 

"And the heavy night hung dark 
The hills and waters o'er, 
When a band of exiles moored their bark 
On the wild New England shore. 

"Amidst the storm they sang, 

And the stars heard, and the sea; 
And the sounding aisles of the dim woods rang 
To the anthem of the free. 

"The ocean eagle soared 

From his nest by the w^hite waves' foam ; 
And the rocking pines of the foiest roared — 
This was their -welcome home." 

— Felicia Dorothea Henians. 

Forming- a Government. — At a meeting in the cabin, be- 
fore landing, it was agreed that every man should have 
an equal share in the government, and John Carver was 
chosen governor (see frontispiece). A military company 
was formed, with Miles Standish as captain. The soldiers 
had each a coat of mail, a sword, and a matchlock musket. 

They brought on shore all their possessions, such as we see at this day at 
Pilgrim Hall, Plymouth, — arm-chairs and spinning-wheels, and Miles Standish's 
great iron dinner-kettle, Lora Standish's sampler, and the cradle of Peregrine 
White, the baby who was bora on board the Mayflower, and who was named 
Peregrine from the peregrinations (or wanderings) of the Pilgrims. — Higginson. 

The First Winter.— The Pilgrims began at once to build 
houses of logs, with roofs thatched with long, dry grass, 



54 



TREATY WITH THE RED MEN. 



and with oiled paper for windows. When the houses were 
finished, the^^ erected a log structure, the lower part of 
which was used for a church, and the upper part for a fort. 

Here Elder Brew^- 
ster preached, 
and all felt safe. 
They lived by 
hunting and fish- 
ing until com 
was raised, but 
they often suf- 
fered for want of 
food, and some- 
times the strong- 
est men stag- 
gered from weak- 
ness. The suffer- 
ing from cold, 
hunger, and ex- 
posure was very 
great, and sick- 
■ PRESERVED IS "CSS fcU hcavlly 
upon the colony-. 
Every second day a grave was dug in the frozen earth, 
and by spring but fifty souls remained. 

Treaty with the Red Men.— The red men taught the Pilgrims to 'shoot fish 
with arrows, to tread eels out of the mud with their feet," and many other 
helpful things. One pleasant morning in spring, Samoset, a chief of a pettj' tribe, 
came to the settlement with words of welcome, and a few days later he brought 
Massasoit, the chief of the Wampanoags, who made a friendly treaty with them, 
which was not broken for over fifty years. 

The First Crop.— The first crop was scanty to feed the 
colonists, and as more emigrants came over without a 
supply of food, their privations continued great, and at 




MILES STANUISU'S SWORD, POT, AND PLATTER- 
PILGRIM HALL, PLYMOUTH. 



MASSACHUSETTS BAY COLONY. 



55 



one time there were but five grains of com a day for each 
person. But the people were industrious, and abundance 
came at last. 

Sources of Wealth. — After a time the colonists sold com 
to fishing vessels, and exchanged it with the Indians for 
furs. They also sent cargoes of sassafras, furs, and lumber 
to England. 

The woods were a source of wealth. Boards, shingles, staves, and hoops for 
barrels, and masts, all of which cost nothing but labor, were shaped and laid out 
in the winter season for the basis of trade in the coming summer. The pine forests 
offered a supply of turoentine, pitch, and tar. The fishery was counted upon as an 
important means of support and gain. — Palfrey's History of Mew Engla-nd. 



autumn of 1628, 
with some fifty or 



Massachusetts Bay Colony.— In the 
John Endicott, his wife, and family, 
sixty others, founded the town now- 
called Salem. Five ship-loads of set- 
tlers came over the following j^ear. 
This was the beginning of what was 
called the Massachusetts Bay Colony. 
In 1630, John Winthrop, who had 
been appointed governor, set sail for 
Massachusetts with about a thousand 
people. He brought a charter, granted 
by Charles I. of England, allowing 
the colonists to make their own laws. A part of Win- 
throp's company settled at Boston, and that place became 
the capital of the colon^^ Settlements were also made 
at Chariest own, Dorchester, Lynn, and at other places. 
During the j^ear, at least fifteen hundred persons came from 
England, and in ten years not less than twenty thousand 
were brought over. 

At this time (1630), there was a feeble colonj' in Virginia; a very small Dutch 
settlement in New York; a population of about three hundred at Plj'mouth; 
about as many more English inhabitants divided between Salem and Charlestow^n ; 




56 



PILGRIMS AND PURITANS UNITE. 



a few settlers scattered up and down the coast, and all the rest a vast wilderness, 
the covert of wild beasts and savages. — Kdward Everett. 

These colonists were named Puritans, because they had sought to make the 
Church of England purer. They had been persecuted, and came to America, 
hoping to have greater freedom, but they did not dislike their mother country 
so much as had the Pilgrims, and left her saj-ing, " Farewell, dear England ! " 

Suffering's of the Puritans.— Although the Puritans 
brought tools, cattle, and horses, and were much more 
numerous and w^ealthy than the Pilgrims, they suffered 
greatly, and one of the colonists wrote : 

" Bread is so very scarce, that sometimes I think the ver>- crumbs of my 
father's table would be sweet unto me ; and when I could have meat, water, and 

salt boiled together, it was so 
good, who could wish better ? " At 
first raanj'Idied of fatigue and hard- 
ship, but they found " a sup of New^ 
England's air better than a draught 
of 0:d England's ale," and grew 
healthy and content. 

Pilgrims and Puritans 
Unite.— The Massachu- 
setts Bay Colony in- 
creased much more rap- 
idly than that at Ply- 
mouth. For sixty years 
each was a little republic, 
where the people man- 
aged their own affairs ; 
but the two colonies united (1692), taking the name Mas- 
sachusetts from a tribe of Indians. 

Character of the Puritans.— The Puritans came to the 
New World to enjoy religious freedom. Thej^ were a noble 
people, temperate in their habits, and strict in morals ; but 
they wished everybody who settled among them to believe 
just as they did, and this was the cause of much trouble. 
A young minister, named Roger Williams, who believed 




iilULE, liKOLGHT OVER IN THE MAYI'LOWEK, I.V 
PILGRI.M HALL, PLYMOUTH. 



CONNECTICUT. 57 

that everj' man should Hsten to his own conscience, was 
forced to find a home elsewhere. The Quakers, also, were 
driven out of the colony. 

Maine a Part of Massachusetts. — During the whole of the 
colonial period, Maine was considered a part of Massachu- 
setts, and it was not counted a separate colony even at the 
time of the Revolution. People went to that region to 
hunt and fish, and its first settlements were mere fishing 
stations. The French and Indians from Canada were a 
source of constant terror to English settlers, and they came 
ver^^ slowly. 

CONNECTICUT. 

First Explorers. — Connecticut is said to be an Indian 
word, meaning "long river." A Dutch navigator, Adrian 
Block, first explored its coast, and the Dutch bought land 
of an Indian chief, and built a trading post, near where 
Hartford now is, w^hich the3^ named House of Hope. They 
told the English not to sail up the river, and when, shortly 
after, a company of traders from Plymouth hove in sight, 
they threatened to fire upon them. But the English took no 
heed of their threats, and, sailing right along, established 
a post a short distance above (1633). For many years 
there was rivalry between the Dutch and English in the 
Connecticut Valley, wdiose rich bottom-lands were very at- 
tractive to the settlers of Massachusetts. 

The Connecticut Colony. — In the autumn of 1635, John 
Steele, of Cambridge, led the first overland party to the 
valley, and began the settlement of Hartford. They suf- 
fered greath^ in their open cabins, half-buried in snow^, w^ith 
only a little corn for food. The next year, the Reverend 
Thomas Hooker took out the main colony-. There were 
no roads, and they drove their cattle through the wilder- 
ness, and traveled on foot through swamps, and over 



5S THE PEQUOU WAR. 

rugged mountains, with little food, save milk from their 
cows. Mrs. Hooker, being sick, was carried on a litter. 
They reached the river at last, and settled Hartford, Wind- 
sor, and Weathersfield, known as the Connecticut Colony. 
All freemen v/ho had taken the oath of allegiance were 
allowed to vote. 

The Pequod War.— The colonists had been in their new 
homes but a few months when a war broke out with a 
fierce Indian tribe, called Pequods, in which other New 
England colonies \vere involved. There was danger that 
the Narragansetts would join the Pequods, and the good 
Roger Williams, forgetting the wrongs he had received from 
the Puritans, and risking his OAvn life, went to the Indian 
council, where, after three days, he prevailed on the chief 
of the Narragansetts to help the whites. 

The Pequods made frequent attacks on the settlers, and 
a body of ninety men was raised in the weak Connecticut 
settlements. After spending nearly all night in prayer, 
the\^ set out on their terrible march. On the way they 
were joined by several hundred friendly Indians, and all 
moved stealthily forward to surprise the foe. 

Destruction of the Pequods.— The Pequods had a fort 
— a circular stockade, made by setting the trunks of trees 
side by side in the ground. Within the enclosure veere a 
large number of wigwams, covered with thatch. The party 
reached the fort at day-bre,ak to find the sentry asleep. 
Being aroused, he shouted, "Owanux!" " Owanux ! " (the 
English). But the troops rushed in at the gate; the wig- 
wams were soon ablaze; the whole tribe perished in a day, 
and the colonies were not again disturbed b\^ savages for 
many years. 

New Haven Colony. — New Haven was settled by wealthy 
Puritans, direct from England, iind for a long time the 



UNION OF NEW ENGLAND COLONIES. 59 

people had no law but the Bible, and none but church 
members were allowed to vote (1638). 

Union of New Eng-land Colonies.— The Pequod war 
proved to be a valuable lesson to the colonies of New Eng- 
land. They saw how easily a single colony might be over- 
come by Indians or other foes, and a union of all the 
colonies for protection against the Indians, Dutch, and 
French took place in 1643. As Rhode Island was claimed 
by Plymouth, it was not admitted into this union, which 
endured for nearly fifty years. We shall see how, more 
than a hundred years later, the colonists again united to 
resist a powerful foe, and secure their rights. 

Body of Liberties. — in December, 164.1, a general code of laws, or "Body ol 
Liberties," was agreed upon, by which every citizen was given by law all tVie 
rights he had hitherto enjoyed by favor. "The general court of Massachusetts 
established a hundred laws, w^hich were to be read and considered in every gen- 
eral court held within the ensuing three years. Then, those not repealed or 
altered were to become laws of the colonies." 

The laws were written by Nathaniel Ward, at one time a Puritan clerg3'man, 
but then a lawj-er. Some of them would sound strange in our days, but for those 
times they w^ere fair and liberal. Ten offenses w^ere punished with death ; among 
them were idolatry, witchcraft, blasphemy, and treason. Women, children, ser- 
vants, foreigners, and animals were protected by various penalties, but slavery 
was sanctioned. 

Union of Connecticut Colonies.— The Connecticut colo- 
nies were united, and through the iniluence of Governor 
John Winthrop, Jr., a most liberal charter was obtained 
from King Charles II. (1662). All the New England colo- 
nies prized their charters very highly, and feared that the 
English king might take them away. 

New Eng-land as a Royal Province.— Some twenty years 
later, King James II. concluded that the colonies had too 
many rights, and he placed the whole of New England 
under one governor, making it a royal province (1686). 
Sir Edmond Andros was appointed governor, and he 
proved to be a great tyrant. 



60 RHODE ISLAND. 

A Charter Concealed.— Andros, very pompous, and slittering with scarlet and 
lace, went to Hartford, and demanded the charter of the assembly (1687). There 
was a harsh debate, and the j)eople crowded around to take a last look at the 
paper which secured them their rights. Just then the lights were blown out, 
and the charter was seized and hidden in a hollow tree, which became famous 
in history as the "Charter Oak." 

Andros Seized. — The people of New England suffered 
from the tyranny of Andros until his rule became so bad 
that he could be endured no longer, when he was seized and 
placed in prison. The colonies then went back to their 
old waj^ of law-making and governing, and the charter of 
Connecticut was brought from its hiding place. 

RHODE ISLAND. 

Settlement of Providence.— After his banishment, Roger 
Williams took refuge among the Indians, with whom he 
remained for several months. He then purchased lands 
from them, and began a settlement, which he named Provi- 
dence, "in memory of God's merciful providence to him in 
his distress." Annie Hutchinson, a gifted preacher who 
was obliged to flee from the wrath of the Puritans, and 
Quakers who were sorely persecuted, found shelter and 
rest in Providence, \vhere Williams Avelcomed people of 
every creed. In this way the little state of Rhode Island 
began to be settled (1636). 

Religious Freedom.— Roger Williams kept none of his 
large tract of land for himself, but "gave it to them that 
seemed most in want." He said, "I desire it to be a shel- 
ter for those in distress for conscience." The new colony 
obtained a charter from the king, and its laws allowed 
Catholics, Protestants, Mohammedans, and Jews to wor- 
ship as they chose. The men of all nations and countries 
w^ere free to come, and no one has ever been persecuted 
within its borders. 



NEW HAMPSHIRE. 61 

New Hampshire was settled at Dover and Portsmouth 
the same year (1643). The latter was first named Straw^- 
berry Bank, from the quantity of strawberries that grew 
there. Thirty years after its settlement, the town con- 
tained but fifty or sixty families. The territory was sev- 
eral times a province of Massachusetts, and once of New 
York, but it became a royal province, and its governor 
was appointed by the king (1741). 

Vermont w^as claimed by New Hampshire, and, for a 
long time, it was knov^n as the New Hampshire Grant. 
New York also set up a claim to it as a part of the 
grant to the Duke of York, and tried to make the set- 
tlers pay for their land again. The " Green Mountain 
Boys" would not submit to this, and they formed a gov- 
ernment of their own, which they kept up until after the 
Revolution. The first name given to the country was 
Ne\v Connecticut. 

Topics. — Tell what you can about — 

I. THE SETTLEMENT OF MASSACHUSETTS. 

1. The coming of the Pilgrims. 2. Forming a gov- 
ment. 3. The first winter. 4. Treaty with the red 
men. 5. The first crop. 6. The sources of wealth. 
7. The Massachusetts Baj' Colony. 8. Puritans. 
9. Sufferings of the Puritans. 10. The Pilgrims and 
Puritans united. 11. Character of the Puritans. 12. 
Maine a part of Massachusetts. 

II. THE SETTLEMENT OF CONNECTICUT. 

1. First explorers. 2. The Connecticut Colony. 3. 
Pequod war. 4. New Haven Colonj-. 5. Union of 
New England colonies. 6. Union of Connecticut 
colonies. 7. New England a royal ijrovince. 8. A 
charter concealed. 9. The seizure of Andros. 

III. THE SETTLEMENT OF RHODE ISLAND. 

1. Settlement of Providence. 2. Religious freedom. 

IV. THE SETTLEMENT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE — VERMONT. 



62 OTHER EVENTS L\ NEW ENGLAND. 



Chapter XI. 

OTHER ^VILNTTS IN KT^W ENGLAND. 

reaching" the Indians. — Early in the history- of New Bug- 
lend, an effort was made to teach the Indians, and lead 
them to Christ. Several missionaries were appointed by 
the governors of Massachusetts. One of the most noted 
was John Eliot, "the apostle to the Indians" (1646-1690). 
Eliot had great pity for the sons of the forest, and learned 
to talk with them in their own tongue. He visited all 
the tribes in the Massachusetts colonies, traveling on foot, 
and for da3's together his clothing was not dry, because 
of the many streams he was obliged to ford. The dusky 
savages listened to the preacher's words, and many pro- 
fessed to be Christians. Although it was ver>' hard for 
them to learn the waj^s of w^hite men, the seed sown did 
not seem wholly lost, as, when war came on, man}^ refused 
to join in the war-dance, and clung to their new friends. 

Indian Preachers and Poets. — In later days, some of 
the red men became ministers, and one of them, Samson 
Occum, visited England, where he was called the Indian 
Whitefield. At the planting of a memorial pine at Dart- 
mouth College, in early times, three Indians, w^ho had re- 
ceived their education at that school, composed the hymn, 
"When Shall We Three Meet Again?" 

"Though in distant lands we sigh, 
Parched beneath a burning skj*. 
Though the deep between us rolls. 
Friendship shall unite our souls; 
And in fancy's wide domain, 
There we three shall meet again. 



KING PHILIP S WAR. 



63 



' When the dreams of life are fled, 
When its wasted lamps are dead, 
When in cold oblivion's shade. 
Beauty, health, and strength are laid,- 
Where immortal spirits reign. 
There -we three shall meet again." 



King" Philip's War. — Massasoit, the faithful friend of the 
whites, had two sons, one of whom was named Philip, the 
other, Alexander. After the death of Alexander, the author- 
ity passed to Philip, and 
he ruled the tribe. King 
Philip, as the Puritans 
called him, was a noble- 
hearted Indian, -who loved 
his country and people 
well. At first, he was 
friendly to the whites, send- 
ing presents to them, and 
helping them against other 
tribes. But as he grew 
older, and saw how the 
whites were taking more 
and more of his hunting 
grounds; how they were 
clearing the forests, and 
building villages on the 
pleasant places where his fathers were buried, he became 
sad, and brooded long over the wrongs of his people. 

At last, Philip made a great effort to drive the English 
from his native soil. His chief home was at Mount Hope, 
near Fall River, Massachusetts, but he left it and hastened 
from tribe to tribe, inducing nearly all, from Maine to 
Connecticut, to join his league, and war soon broke out 




KING PHILIP 8 ARMS. 



64 THE SALEM WITCHCRAFT. 

all along the line. Village after A^Uage was burned, and 
men, women, and children were killed. There was no safety 
in the field, at home, or at church. The colonists made 
haste to defend themselves, and a thousand men were sent 
against the stronghold of the enemy in the swamps of 
Rhode Island (1676). The Indians were defeated, and 
nearly all were killed ; but Philip kept up the struggle un- 
til he was hunted down and shot in a swamp, where he 
had fled for safety. This war cost the colonists six hun- 
dred lives, twelve or thirteen towns, and ever\^ eleventh 
home was destroyed. 

During the struggle, King Philip's wife and child were captured by a force 
sent against him. Plearing of this, he exclaimed, "My heart breaks, and I am 
ready to die?" His child was a boy of nine years, and the last of the race of 
Massasoit. The Puritans, who owed so much to the grandfather, sold the child 
as a slave to Bermuda. — Uigginson. 

The Salem Witchcraft. — In the dajs of the Puritans, 
nearly everybody in the Old World, as well as the New, 
believed in what was called witchcraft. That is, some 
persons were supposed to possess an influence which came 
from the Evil One, and it was believed that they had the 
power to cast a spell upon others, causing them to act 
very strangel3^ In this way .-both men and beasts were 
thought to be bewitched. 

"Children were said to bark like dogs, to mew like cats, to fall on the floor, 
to fly like geese," and one jumped uid in church and shouted, " Parson, your 
text is too long!" Hawthorne says: "Thej' complained of being pinched, and 
pricked with pins, and otherwise tormented by the shapes of men and women, 
who were supposed to have the power to haunt them invisibly. Often, in the 
midst of friends, they would pretend to be seized with strange convulsions, when 
they would cry out that the witches were afl3icting them." 

In Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692, there lived a minister 
by the name of Parris, whose daughter and niece were ill 
of a strange disease, and the doctors pronounced them 
bewitched. Mr, Parris accused certain women, who were 



THE SALEM WITCHCRAFT. 65 

arrested, and the people became much excited. Parents 
accused their children, and children their parents. One 
minister, " an intelligent and godly man," was hanged. The 
panic raged for more than a year. Nineteen were hanged, 
one ■v^^as pressed to death, one hundred and fifty were 
thrown into prison, and some two hundred were accused. 

Many devoted sons and daughters clung to their parents, visited them iu 
prison in defiance of a bloodthirsty mob, kept by their side on the way to exe- 
cution ; expressed their love, sjTnpathj', and reverence to the last; and by brave 
and perilous enterprises, got possession of their remains, and bore them back 
under the cover of midnight to their own thresholds, and to graves kept con- 
secrated by their prayers and tears. — Upham's History of the Salem Witchcraft. 

At last, people began to come to their senses. Parris 
■was driven from Salem, others asked forgiveness for their 
folly and wickedness in acting as accusers or judges, and 
there were no more arrests for witchcraft. It is said that 
one Noyes, who had taken an active part in the proceed- 
ings against witches, regained favor " onlj^ by a full con- 
fession and a promise to devote the remainder of his life to 
deeds of mercy." Judge Sewall was so sorry for what he 
liad done that he rose in his pew, in the Old South meeting- 
house, on fast day, and read a paper to the whole congre- 
gation, in which he bewailed his great offense.* 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. Eliot, the ajjostle to the Indians. 

2. Indian preachers and poets. 

3. King Pliilip's war. 

4. The Salem witchcraft. 

*It is well known that no exclusive reproach can with justice be cast upon any 
part of New England on account of a decision which equally prevailed in the most 
enlightened countries of Europe, and received the countenance of the most learned 
and intelligent men and upright magistrates. In contemplating this sorrowful 
page in the history of our ancestors, we must bear in mind that, as I have already 
intimated, no peculiar reproach attaches to them. They acted upon principles 
which all professed, and in which the sincere in all parts of Christendom reposed 
an undoubting faith.— H.Twt/jornc. 
5 



66 



EARLY DAYS IN NEW ENGLAND. 



Chapter XII. 



EARLY DAYS IN NEW ENGLAND- 

Treatment of Wrong"-DoeFS.— AVe have learned that the 
pioneers of New England came over the sea and estab- 
lished homes in the wilderness, in order that they might 
worship God in their own way. They tried to do what 
they believed to be right, and private conduct was care- 
fully watched. They sought to prevent wrong-doing by 
making the laws very strict. The Sabbath-breaker was 
flogged, the swearer had his tongue put in a cleft stick, 
or his feet set in stocks. Scolds were gagged and placed 
at their own doors "for all comers and goers to gaze at," 
or ducked in running water, and for a time fines were laid 
on those who used tobacco on the street or near an}^ house. 
Meeting'-Houses and Church-Going-. — The first meeting- 
houses were built of logs, the roofs being thatched with 

long grass cut from the marsh- 
^^!yii^= 7- i^^'^' es. The windows were very 

, small, and, as glass was scarce, 

the panes were sometimes made 
of oiled paper. At nine o'clock 
on Sabbath morning a drum 
was beaten, or a horn blown, 
to call the people to church. 
Men and women walked sober- 
ly, side by side, the men in sad- 
colored mantles, and sometimes carrying guns ; the women 
in sober gowns, kerchiefs, and hoods. The boys sat in the 
gallery, or on the steps of the huge pulpit, and were kept 




THE FIRST MEETING-HOnSE. 



SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL- MASTERS. 



6: 



in order by the tithing-man, who dealt a smart blow with 
his wand when a boy fell asleep. The men and women sat 
apart, and the old men, the young men, the old women, 
and 3^oung w^omen occupied different parts of the house. 
No fire was built to warm the church, even in wdnter. The 
congregation sang the most solemn tunes without instru- 
mental music, and the services lasted from three to four 
hours. 




GOINi; TO MEKTING IN SUMMER. 

Schools. — Near the church the Puritans always built a 
school-house, and, as early as 1635, Philemon Purmount 
w^as "entreated" by the people of Boston "to become 
school-master for ye teaching and nuturing of all children 
among us." 

In 1642 it became the law, in Puritan New England, that none of the brethren 
shall suffer so much barbarism in their families as not to teach their children and 
apprentices so much learning as may enable them perfectly to read the English 
tongue. — liancroft. 



68 THE PRINTING -PRESS. 

Harvard University was founded in 1636, and, a few 
years later, each famil3^ was required to give a shilling in 
mone\' or a peck of com every year for the support of 
the school. In 1700, the ministers brought together a 
number of books, which they gave for the foundation of a 
college in Connecticut, and this was the beginning of Yale. 

The Printing'-Press.— The first printing-press was set up 
in Cambridge (1639), and the first book printed was the 
Freeman's Oath. Sermons and religious tracts were the 



TheBofton Newsletter. 

From ^on^acv ^r^ *7*» Q^tttiXuSt April i+. »7»t 



most common works published. The Boston News-Letter 
was the first newspaper printed in any of the colonies. 

New Eng-land Homes. — Most of the earh- settlers lived 
in log cal)iiis. Chimneys were very large, and built on 
the outside. The fire-place was a huge affair, with its 
crane, andirons, and "clean-winged hearth," before ^vhich 
old and young gathered to spend the winter evenings. 

The New England table had its pewter dishes, polished 
b}' the good housewife's hand, while here and there, among 
the well-to-do, one might have seen a silver tankard, an 
heirloom in the family. In the earlier days, tea and coffee 
were unknown. Mush and milk, bean porridge, Indian 
pudding, rye and Indian bread, pork and beans, boiled 
beef and pork, and succotash were common food. 



DRESS, AT HOME AND ABROAD. 



69 



Dress, at Home and Abroad. — The men wore bell-crown 
hats, ruffs about the neck, jerkins instead of coats, short 
breeches, with stockings reaching to the knee, low shoes, 
and a short mantle, instead of an overcoat. When dressed 
up they w^ore bright belts, with gold or silver buttons, 
and huge boots turned down at the top. When at work 
the young Avomen \vere clad in plain homespun, but at 
church they w'ore silk hoods, lace kerchiefs around the 
neck, slashed sleeves, and embroidered caps. The law re- 
quired all to dress according to their means, and if young 
people wore garments they could not afford, they were 
brought before the court and fined. 

Training" Days. — Every month, all males between sixteen 
and sixty were called out to learn to be soldiers. The 
drums beat, the men marched in ranks, with huge muskets, 
or with long pikes. The soldier w^ho had a gun w^ore a 
belt for his sword and cartridges, and carried a rest, or 
iron fork, to be stuck in the ground for the support of 
his heav\' weapon, and also a slow match to touch it off. 
Some of the soldiers wore helmets of steel and breast-plates 
of iron, while others Avere content with coats wadded Avith 
cotton to stop the arrows of the Indian. 

Chief Occupations. — Farming, hunting, and fishing were 
the chief occupations 
at first, but the man- 
ufacture of cotton 
and woolen, of glass, 
salt, tar, and pow- 
der gradually became 
quite common. From 
timber, Avhich grew 
everywhere, ships \vere built, one of the first of which bore 
the name, "Blessing of the Bav." The v carried on consid- 




I'lNE-XnEE SHILI.IM 



70 SLAVERY. 

erable trade, but lacked money, and used wampum, skins, 
and even bullets, in its place, until Massachusetts coined 
shillings and other pieces of silver of less value (1652). 
These silver coins had the image of a pine on one side, and 
were called "pine-tree shillings," etc. 

Amusements — Traveling'.— The theater, dancing, cards, 
and dice ^vere forbidden, and few other amusements were 
allowed. People usually traveled on foot or on horseback, 
and the bride often rode on a horse behind her husband to 
her new home. Chaises and gigs w^ith wooden springs 
gradualh^ came into use. People living near the coast 
journeyed on sloops so small as to be navigated by a man 
and a bo^-. 

Slavery. — Slavery in a mild form existed in all the colo- 
nies, the slaves, as a rule, being employed as house servants 
rather than as field hands. At first, the practice of hold- 
ing men in bondage was strongly opposed by some, and 
the legislature of Massachusetts sent back the first cargo 
of negroes landed in Boston (1646). But some of the 
leading clergy-men sustained slavery, and it was finally 
established, and continued to exist until after the Revolu- 
tionary War. 

Topics.— Tell ot — 

I. EARLY DAYS IN NKW E.NOLANO. 

1. Treatment of wrong-doers. 

2. Meeting-houses and church-going. 

3. Schools. 

4. The printing-press. 

5. New England homes. 

6. Dress, at home and aliroad. 

7. Training days. 

8. Chief occupations. 

9. Amusements — Traveling. 
10. Slavery. 



NEW JERSEY AND THE QUAKERS. 71 



Chapter XIII. 

NEW JERSEY AND THE QUAKERS. 

A Part of New Netherlands. — When the Dutch built their 
little log fort on Manhattan Island (1614), they also put 
up a redoulDt on the opposite shore, in -what is now called 
New Jersey, and claimed the whole region as a part of 
New Netherlands. The Swedes, Danes, and English came 
in as settlers, and much trouble followed, until all were 
driven out, and the Dutch had the land to themselves. 

Grant to Berkeley and Carteret.— When the Duke of York 
came into possession of New Netherlands (1664), he sold 
to Lord John Berkeley and Sir George Carteret all that 
part between the Hudson and the Delaware rivers. Car- 
teret had been governor of the island of Jersey, in the 
British Channel, and the purchase was named New Jersey. 
The first settlement, a little cluster of houses, was called 
Elizabethtown (now Elizabeth), after Carteret's wife, Eliza- 
beth, and it became the seat of government. 

A Liberal Charter. — The proprietors gave a charter assur- 
ing political and religious freedom to all ; they also offered 
land free of rent for five years, after which an annual rent 
of half a penn3^ an acre was to be paid. The liberal char- 
ter, the quick soil, and the mild climate attracted many 
settlers ; and all went well until the rents were due, when 
a part of the people, who had received their lands from 
other owners, refused to pay, and much trouble followed. 

The Quakers.— In 1674, Berkeley, who was then a very 
old man, sold his interest in New Jersey to John Fenwick 
in trust for Edward Bjdlinge. These men were Quakers, 



72 GOVERNMENT OF WEST JERSEY. 

and the land was bought as a home for the people of their 
faith. A little later, it passed into the hands of William 
Penn and a few other influential Friends (Quakers), who, 
desiring a territor^^ where the3^ could establish a govern- 
ment of their own, brought about a division of the land, 
Carteret taking East Jersey, and the Quakers, West Jersey 
(1676). The earliest settlements of the Quakers were made 
at Salem and Burlington. 

The Friends. — The religious society of Friends, or Quakers, as thej- are called 
in the United States, was founded by George Fox, who was born in England, 
in 1624, and began his work as a preacher when about twentji^-four years of 
age, continuing it until his death, in 1690. The Quakers believe in what they 
call the inner light, the voice of God in the soul. They regard all men as equal 
in rank; and are opposed to w^ar, to slaverj', and to the death-penaltj' as a pun- 
ishment for crime. They allow no titles, dress with great plainness, and their 
speech is simi)le. They trust the law of kindness, and carry no weapons for 
defense, even among savages. 

Government of West Jersey.— All power was placed in 
the hands of the people, and every man might choose or 
be chosen to office. The legislature \vas made up of per- 
sons elected by ballot ; justices and constables were chosen 
in the same manner. The law declared that every man 
should be free; and it' said, "No person shall, at any time, 
or in any AvaA', or on any pretense, be called in question, 
or in the least punished or hurt for opinion in religion." 
There could be no imprisonment for debt ; courts were man- 
aged without lawyers ; no one was permitted to sell rum 
to the Indians ; and helpless orphans were to be educated 
by the state. 

The colony had troable with the agent of the Duke of 
York, Avho wished to levy customs on their ships ascend- 
ing the Delaware ; but he finally 3'ielded every claim to 
the territory and the government, and the light of peace 
da\vned. The **men who said thee and thou, and wore 
their hats in presence of beggar or king," increased in 



TROUBLE ABOUT TITLES. 73 

numbers and were liapp}-. " The}- met in the wilderness as 
men, and founded society on eqnal rights." (See Bancroft's 
History, Vol. I.) 

Purchase of East Jersey.— In 1682, Penn and a few other 
Friends bought East Jersey from the heirs of Carteret, and 
Robert Barclay was appointed governor. Barclay was a 
young Scotch Quaker, who after\vards rose to great emi- 
nence as a writer in that denomination. Quakers from the 
Old World, and from Long Island, flocked to East Jerse\', 
but they had to endure the tyranny of Edmond Andros, 
governor of New York, Avho claimed the right to rule over 
them, until he was driven from the countr3^ 

Trouble About Titles.— Some of the settlers had bought 
their lands of the Indians, some from the original Dutch 
owners, others received grants from Nicolls, the first Eng- 
lish governor, and some from Berkeley and Carteret. This 
led to great trouble about titles, as well as rents, and the 
proprietors, wearied with contentions and subjected to 
losses, were glad to give up their rights to Queen Anne 
(1702), and the two colonies were made one. It was ruled 
by the governor of New York until 1738, Avhen it was 
made an independent colony, and so remained until the 
Revolution. 



Topics- 


-Tell what 3'ou can about — 




1. 


New Jersey as a part of New Netherlands. 




2. 


The grant to Berkeley and Carteret. 




8. 


The liberal charter. 




4. 


The Quakers. 




5. 


The Friends. 




G. 


Government of West Jersey. 




7. 


Purchase of East Jerse3-. 




8. 


Trouble about titles. 



74 



WILLIAM PENN AND HIS COLONY. 



Chapter XIV. 



WILLIAM PENN AND HIS COLONY. 




William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania, was the son 
of an English admiral. He was well educated and rich, 
but became a Quaker, to the great sor- 
row of his father, who turned him out 
of doors, but, after a time, restored 
him to favor. 

Penn's Plan. — Penn was very deeply 
grieved because of the wrongs his 
lirethren, the Quakers, had to endure, 
and, after the death of his father, he 
formed the plan of leading them forth 
to found homes in the New World. 
King Charles owed the admiral £16,000, and Penn offered 
to take payment in lands. The king gave him a vast 
region west of the Delaware, which, on account of the for- 
est, Penn wished to name Sylvania; but the king insisted 
on calling it Penn-Sylvania, meaning "Penn's Woods." 

Treatment of Settlers.— Penn crossed the sea to his new 
purchase in the ship Welcome. He came to found a state 
where men should dwell "as free and happy as they could 
be"; and told the people who had already' settled on his 
lands, " Whatever sober and free men can reasonably desire 
for the securit}^ and improvement of their own hapjmiess, 
I shall heartily comply with." Later, he said, "If the 
people want of me anything that would make them hap- 
pier, I shall readily grant it." 



PHILADELPHIA FOUNDED. 75 

Pledge to the Indians. — Soon after his arrival, Penn met a council of Indian 
chiefs under a spreading elm. He told them that no advantage should be taken 
by either side. "The friendship between you and me I will not compare to a 
chain ; for that the rains might rust, and the falling tree might break. We are 
the same as if one man's body were to be divided into two parts ; we are all 
one flesh and blood." The Indians said, "We will live in love with William Penn 
and his children so long as the sun and moon shall shine." 

Philadelphia Founded.— Penn bought the land of the 
Indian chiefs, and also a neck of land from the Swedes 
between the Schuylkill and the Delaware, where he marked 
out a town, hoping it might become a "faire and greene 
country towne" with gardens around every house (1683). 
He named the place Philadelphia, the "City of Brotherly 
Love." Within a year there were more than a hundred 
houses, and the place continued to grow rapidly. 

Liberal Laws. — The laws were made by a legislature 
chosen by the people. No tax was needed to support the 
poor ; everyone was allowed to worship in his own way ; 
and every child was to be taught a tiseful trade. 

Fenn Returns to England, — After two j'ears Penn went back to England, where 
he remained for fifteen years. When he returned with his family, intending to 
make the New World his home, he found a great deal to annoy. Many seemed 
ungrateful for the favors he had bestowed ; and there was so much trouble that 
he resolved to return to his native land. 

A Thrifty People.— A good class of people came to settle 
in Pennsylvania, among whom were many thousands of 
Germans. The Quakers, who formed a large portion of the 
settlers, were noted for their good order and thrift. The 
inhabitants devoted themselves to farming, ship-building, 
and commerce. Every house (174-8), had its garden and 
orchard, and "peaches were so abundant that the very 
pigs w^ere fed on them." Common schools were estab- 
lished, and the first girls' school in the United States was 
founded at Lewiston, Delaware, when that territory was 
a part of Pennsylvania. At the time of the Revolution, 
the colony ranked third in population and influence. 




(76) 



DELAWARE, OR NEW SWEDEN. 77 



Topics.- Tell what you can about — 

1. William Penn. 

2. Penn's plan — prant. 

3. Treatment of settlers. 

4. Pledge to the Indians. 

5. Philadelphia. 

6. Liberal laws. 

7. Penn's return to England. 

8. A thrifty people. 



Chapter XV. 

DELAWARE, OR NEW SWEDEN -MARYLAND. 
DELAWARE. 

Its Earliest Explorer. — Lord Delaware, who was for a 
time governor of Virginia, in exploring the coast (1610), 
sailed tip a broad and beautiful river, afterwards called by 
his name. A score of years later, the Dutch tried to plant 
a colony there, but the settlers v^ere killed by the savages. 
Soon after, Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, "The 
Lion of the North," made up his mind to send a colony to 
America, Settlers were to take their wives and children, 
but no slaves were to be held. 

Settled by Swedes and Finns.— Gustavus Adolphus was 
killed in battle, and his little daughter, Christina, only six 
years old, \vas made queen. Notwithstanding this, a large 
number of Swedes and Finns came over (1638). They 
built a fort, naming it Christiana, after the girl queen. 
The colony took the name New Sw^eden, and for a time it 
prospered. 

Under Dutch Rule.— The Dutch, who claimed the land, 
and wanted all the trade with the red men, did not like the 



78 MARYLAND — RELIGIOUS FREEDOM. 

way things were going; so, Peter St uyves ant sailed up the 
Delaware, captured the Swedish fort, and brought the col- 
ony under Dutch rule. 

Eng-lish Rule.— When the Duke of York took possession 
of New Netherlands, it became subject to the English. In 
this way it came about that little Delaware belonged, in 
turn, to the Swedes, the Dutch, and the English. It also 
•formed a part of Pennsylvania, but became a separate 
colony (1703). 

MARYLAND. 

Its Name — Relig"ious Freedom.— Lord Baltimore, a Cath- 
olic, seeking a refuge for his persecuted brethren in England, 
secured from King Charles I. a grant of land north of the 
Potomac. Lord Baltimore died before the charter was 
signed ; but his son Cecil, the second Lord Baltimore, took 
his place. The tract was named Mary's Land, in honor of 
Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of the reigning king. Under 
the charter, all freemen were to have the right to take part 
in making the laws ; and, from the first, all Christian sects 
were allowed to vvrorship as they saw fit. 

The First Colony. — Leonard Calvert, the second Lord 
Baltimore's brother, went out with the first colonists, 
some two hundred in number, sailing in the Ark and the 
Dove. Their first settlement was named St. Mary's (1634). 
It grew rapidly, and, as the Indians had tilled the lands, 
food w^as easily raised, and there w^as plenty for all. 
"The Indian women taught the wives of the new-comers 
to make bread of maize; and the warriors of the tribe 
joined the huntsmen in the chase." Tobacco grew w^ell, 
slaves were introduced to cultivate it, and the people lived 
about the same as their Virginia neighbors. 

Trouble With Clayborne.— In 1631, WilHam Clayborne 
had obtained from Charles I. a license to trade with the 



TROUBLE WITH CLAYBORNE. 



79 



Indians, and had established posts for that purpose on 
Kent Island, in the Chesapeake, and also near the mouth 
of the Susquehanna. Claybome refused to acknowledge the 
authority of Governor Calvert, and took up arms to de- 
fend his own claims, but was defeated. Some time after, 
the Puritans, under Claybome, became so strong that they 
succeeded in taking awa3^ the 
rights of the very people 
who had founded the 




LVNDING OF LEO^ARD 
CALVERT. 



colony and given them shelter Avhen thej' fled from perse- 
cution in Virginia. At last, the king settled the trouble bj^ 
recalling the charter, and establishing the Church of Eng- 
land. A descendant of Lord Baltimore, through the influ- 
ence of the king, finally gained control of the government, 
and religious freedom was restored. 



80 THE CAROLINAS AND GEORGIA. 

Topics.— Tell about— 

I. DELAWARE. 

1. Its earliest explorer. 

2. Settlement by Swedes and Finns. 

3. Under Dutch rule. 

4. English rule. 

II. MARYLAND. 

1. Its name — Religious freedom. 

2. The first colon3'. 

3. Trouble with Clavborne. 



Chapter XVI. 

THE CAROLINAS AND GEORGIA. 

Early Settlements.— As we have learned {page 54), French 
Huguenots attempted to establish a colony at Port Royal 
more than forty years before the settlement of Jamestown. 
Nearly a hundred 3^ears had come and gone, when a poorer 
class of planters from Virginia built their rude homes on 
the Chowan River, in North Carolina. A little later, emi- 
grants from New England, and from Barbadoes, settled at 
the mouth of Cape Fear River (1653), and other scat- 
tered settlements sprung up. 

Grant of Charles II.— Although Spain claimed the terri- 
tory^, and had never given up a foot of it to England, 
King Charles II. granted all of what is now North Caro- 
lina and South Carolina, and much more, to eight proprie- 
tors, most of whom were noblemen at his court. 

Plans of the Proprietors. — There were to be orders of 
nobilitv, the same as in European countries. Earls and 
barons were to own the lands. There were to be lords 
of manors, and leet-men, or tenants, and slaves, the latter 
to be under the absolute control of their masters. Power 



FAILURE OF THE GREAT PLAN. 81 

was to be kept in the hands of the wealth}-, and no one 
owning less than fifty acres of land could vote. 

The Settlement of Charleston.— The first colonists sent 
out by the new proprietors went (1670) to the very spot 
where the French had been so long before, but they soon 
removed to the present site of Charleston, then called Oys- 
ter Point. Attracted by the mild climate, settlers flocked 
in from all directions. There were Dutch, English, Scotch, 
Irish, and French Huguenots. The latter were numbered 
by thousands, and the\' brought the olive, the mulberry-, 
and many varieties of the pear from their own sunn^^ land 
to the banks of the Cooper River, where they opened fine 
plantations. 

Failure of the Great Plan.— With these different classes 
of people, living far apart, in a new country, it was not 
easy for the proprietors to carrj^ out their plans, and the 
colonists were allowed to have an assembly of their own 
choosing. Finally, the proprietors had so much trouble 
aboiit rents, taxes, and rights, that they sold their lands 
to the king, and two royal provinces, North, and South 
Carolina, were established, each having a governor ap- 
pointed by the crown, with a legislature chosen by the 
people. Thus they remained until the Revolution. 

The Rice Plant Introduced. — "At a verj- early period, the captain of a ship from 
Madagascar gave to one of the governors a bag of seed rice, saying that it was 
much esteemed for food in Eastern countries. The governor shared it with his 
friends, and they planted it in different soils to test its fitness for the climate. It 
lived and thrived, and this was the beginning of rice culture in the United States." 
In 1691, the legislature rewarded the invention of new methods for cleansing the 
seed, and Carolina rice came to be esteemed the best in the world. Large tracts 
were given to its cultivation, the wealth of the colonj- increased verj' rapidly, 
and swarms of negro slaves were required in the rice fields, where, it was claimed, 
white men could not labor. In this waj- the white people of South Carolina were 
led to regard slavery as a "divine institution." 

Increase of Slaves. — To secure negro slaves, and rid themselves of labor, 
became the great object of the planters, and the negro race was multiplied so 
rapidly by importations that, in a few years, we are told, the blacks in the low 
6 



82 



OGLETHORPE'S PLAN. 




I JAMES OGLETHOHPE 



country -were to the -whites in the proportion of twent3'-two to twelve, a pro- 
portion that had no parallel north of the West Indies. — Bancroft. 

GEORGIA. 

General James Og"lethorpe, the founder of Georgia, had 
fought against the Turks, and gained honor as a soldier. 
He was a member of Parliament, and 
the friend of many of the leading men 
of his day. 

Og-lethorpe's Plan.— In those days 
a man who o\ved a debt, and could 
not pay, was sometimes thrust into 
prison, and kept there for years. Ogle- 
thorpe had a kind heart, and greatly 
pitied such prisoners, some of whom 
he was able to aid. But this did not 
fully satisfy him, and he formed a plan by which the poor 
and unfortimate might find homes and begin a new life in 
America. 

The Charter. — Oglethorpe obtained a charter from King 
George II., granting the land between the Savannah and 
Altamaha Rivers, and extending westward to the Pacific, 
to a board of trustees. This vast tract was named Georgia, 
after the king, and ^vas "held in trust for the poor." The 
seal of the colony represented a group of silk-worms at 
work, with the motto, "Not for Themselves, but for 
Others." 

The First Colony.— Oglethorpe sailed with one hundred 
and twenty persons, who were "penniless, but of good 
repute," though taken mostly from the prisons (1738). 
They landed where Savannah now stands, and Oglethorpe 
pitched his tent under four large pines, where he dwelt for 
nearly a year. Although the trustees held the king's title 
to their lands, Governor Oglethorpe was very careful to 



SLAVERY AND RUM. 83 

pay the Indians for them, and they always remained his 
true friends. 

Conduct of the Indians. — The Indians received Oglethorpe with strange cere- 
monies, and a chief presented him with a large bitftalo skin, with the head and feath- 
ers of an eagle painted on the inside. The chief then said, " The eagle signifies swift- 
ness, and the buffalo, strength. The English are swift as a bird to fly over the 
seas, and as strong as a beast before their enemies. The eagle's feathers are soft 
and signify love; the buffalo's skin is warm, and means protection; therefore, love 
and protect our families." 

Slavery and Rum. — The charter for the colony of Georgia 
said nothing about the introduction of negroes, but as 
the colony was founded as a home for the poor and the 
unfortunate, the trustees held that it virtually prohibited 
slavery ; and Oglethorpe, who was the true friend of the 
negroes, as well as the w^hites, did all in his pow^er to 
prevent its introduction. The importation of rum was 
also prohibited by the trustees. Both the negro and the 
rum acts were approved by the king (1735). 

But the colonists, especially those who had settled at 
Savannah, soon began to clamor for slaves. They claimed 
that white men could not work in the heat; that such 
w^ork would bring on "fevers, fluxes, colics, tremors, swim- 
ming of the head, palsies," and other diseases. So it came 
about that the penniless men, who had received the 
bounty of the trustees, accused them of ruining their pros- 
pects b}^ denying them the privilege of owning slaves. The 
colonists also wanted rum. After a struggle lasting more 
than sixteen j^ears, the trustees were obliged to yield, and 
slavery was introduced. Rum, also, was imported. The 
plans of the noble Oglethorpe had failed. 

The Wesleys and Whitefield. — Among those who went to Georgia with the sec- 
ond expedition of Oglethorpe were John and Charles Wesley. John longed to 
spread the gospel among the settlers and their neighbors, the Indians. He spent 
two years in the colony, but was not very successful, and returned to England. 
A little later, came George Whitefield {whit field), the eloquent preacher, who hehl 



84 TROUBLE WITH THE SPANIARDS. 

open-air meetings, attended by thousands of people. He founded a "Home for 
Orphans " at Savannah, and supported it with money contributed at his meet- 
ings. Whitcfield favored slavery, and, partly through his influence, it was intro- 
ditccd, after Oglethorpe left. 

Trouble with the Spaniards.— During the war between 
England and Spain, Oglethorpe led a force of whites and 
Indians against their Spanish neighbors at St. Augustine, 
Florida (1740), but his expedition failed. Two years later 
the Spaniards attacked Savannah, but were utterly de- 
feated. 

Georg-ia a Royal Province.— Oglethorpe left soon after, 
and the other trustees whom the king had appointed took 
charge of the colony, but many of their laws were disliked 
by the people, and their complaints became so bitter that 
the trust-ees gladly gave up their charter, and Georgia be- 
came a royal province. 

The Settlers and Their Work.— Many of the settlers were 
Moravians, a persecuted sect of Christians from Austria. 
There was also a settlement of Scotch Highlanders, who 
continued to wear the Highland garb. Both Moravians 
and Highlanders took great pains in teaching their children, 
but the rest of the colony cared little for schools. For a 
time the raising of silk-worms and the manufacture of 
silk were encouraged, and persons skilled in this industry 
were sent to the colony. The queen of England had a 
dress made of the first silk produced. 

Oglethorpe's Character— Later Years.— in 1743, Oglethorpe sailed for England, 
never again to behold the colonj' to which he consecrated the disinterested toils 
of ten years. Gentle in nature and affable ; merciful to the prisoner; a father to the 
emigrant; the unwavering friend of Wesley; the constant benefactor of the Mora- 
vians; honestly zealous for the conversion of the Indians; invoking for the negro 
the panoply of the gospel ; the reliever of the poor — his name became another 
expression for "vast benevolence of soul." — Ilancroft. 

Oglethorpe lived to be nearly five-score years of age, his figure the finest ever 
seen, his ej-e still iindimtned, his mind clear. " He was like the sound of the l3'rc, as 
it still vibrates after the spirit that sweeps the strings has passed away." 



THE FRENCH IN AMERICA. 85 



Topics. — Tell what you can about — 

1. THE CAROLINAS. 

1. Earlj' settlements. 

2. The grant of Charles II. 

3. Plans of the proprietors. 

4-. The settlement of Charleston. 

5. Failure of the great plan. 

6. Introduction of the rice plant. 

7. Increase of slaves. 

II. GEORGIA. 

1 . General James Oglethorpe. 

2. Oglethorpe's plan. 

3. The charter. 

4. The first colon_v. 

5. The conduct of the Indians. 

6. Slavery and rum. 

7. The Wesleys and Whitetield. 

8. Trouble with the Spaniards. 

9. Georgia a royal province. 

10. The settlers and their work. 

11. Oglethorpe's later years. 



Chapter XVII. 

THE FRENCH IN AMERICA, 

Explorations and Claims.— We have learned of the dis- 
covery of the St. Law^rence by Cartier {page 21), and of 
the French claim to all the region drained by that mighty 
stream. Three years before the settlement of Jamestown, 
Virginia, De Monts {de mawng^), a French Huguenot, had 
established a settlement at Port Royal (1604), in the 
French province of Acadia, which included Nova Scotia, 
New Brunswick, and a part of Ma,ine, a region greatly 
prized on account of the valuable fisheries near its coast. 



86 CONTESTS BETWEEN ENGLAND AND FRANCE. 

A Frenchman bj^ the name of Champlain founded Quebec 
(1608), and pushed his way southward to the beautiful 
lake that now bears his name. 

French missionaries, anxious to save the souls of the sav- 
ages, and French traders, wishing to procure furs, pressed 
farther and farther up the St. Lawrence, to the very head 
of the Great Lakes, establishing a trading post at Sault 
Ste. Marie (soo st. mary) as early as 1668. Joliet {zho 
le a') and Marquette {mar kct') reached the Mississippi 
(1673), and Father Hennepin explored its upper waters 
(1680). La Salle {-sahl) discovered the Ohio (1682), and 
sailed down the Mississippi to its mouth. French settle- 
ments were begun in Louisiana in 1699. 

So it came about that the French claimed and held all 
the country along the St. Lawrence, the Great Lakes; and 
the Mississippi Valley to the Alleghanies. Here and there, 
over this vast region, they had missionary stations and 
trading posts. Between Canada and Louisiana they es- 
tablished a line of some sixty forts, by means of which 
the^' hoped to hold the very heart of the continent against 
all comers. 

The French and Indians. — The French lived with the Indians, adopted their 
ways, made -wives of the squaws, and preached the gospel in the Indian wig- 
wams. The Indians were their friends, and became allies in war against the 
English. The French supplied the Indians with guns and ammunition, and taught 
them to build strong forts. 

Contests Between Eng"land and France.— For three- 
fourths of a century (1689-1763), frequent contests took 
place between England and France, and it was natural 
for the colonists to take part with their parent countries. 
But this was only one of the causes of the wars that took 
place under different names, though really but one long 
struggle, to decide whether the French or English should 
rule America. 



OTHER CAUSES OF TROUBLE. 



87 



Other Causes of Trouble.— The two nations claimed the 
same territory, the grants of the English extending to 
the west, right across vast regions held by the French; 
both nations wished to control the fisheries on the eastern 
coast; and both desired to secure the entire fur trade. 
Then, too, the French w^ere Catholics, and the EngHsh were 



^3^ 

^ 



A^^ 



fV-J; 



J;^-^ 




j (I) J fer * *s 







CLAIMS OF DIFFERENT NATIONS. 

Protestants, and there was strong hatred between them. 
All these causes led to the wars known as King William's 
War, Queen Anne's War, King George's War, and the 
French and Indian War. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. Explorations and claims of the French. 

2. The French and Indians. 

3. Contests between England and France. 

4. Other causes of trouble. 



88 THREE INDIAN WAKS. 



Chapter XVIII. 

THREE INDIAN WARS. 

King" William's War (1689-1697) was so called because 
William III. ruled in England at that time. The French 
king declared \var against England, and the governor of 
New France induced many Indians to join the French, and 
war was made on the defenseless settlements along the 
border in Alaine, New Hampshire, and New York. 

Indian Warfare. — These wars were more bloody than any that had occurred 
before. The Indians seldom attacked the whites in the open field, but prowled 
through the forest to butcher loneU' families, and destroy small villages. Every- 
body lived in constant fear. Mothers who watched their babes, children at plaj', 
and fathers in the field, were liable at any moment to be struck down bj' the 
arrow, the bullet, or the tomahawk. Nearly every village had its block house, 
where the inhabitants could flee for safety. 

Attack on Dover. — The first outbreak occurred at Dover, 
New Hampshire. One pleasant summer evening, two 
squaws applied for lodging at each of the five garrisoned 
houses. They were admitted to all but one. In the night 
the squaws unbolted the gates, and gave a signal to In- 
dians hidden near, who rushed in to torture and to sla3\ 
Tw^o families Avere killed, one was aroused b^' the barking 
of a dog in time to prepare for defense, and t^vo were taken 
prisoners, but managed to escape. {See map, page 94.) 

Attack on Schenectady.— The following winter, a part^^ 
of French and Indians made their way from Canada on 
snow^ -shoes, and attacked Schenectady. Men, women, and 
children were dragged from their beds and massacred. 
The few who escaped fled, half-naked, through the snow, 
to Albany, their burning houses lighting up the dark sky. 



THE STORY OF MRS. DUSTIN. 



89 



The Story of Mrs, Dastin. — Haverhill, Massachusetts, was attacked, and aboiit 
forty people murdered or captured. The savages approached the house of Thomas 
Uustin, who was at work in the field. He hastened to his home, but was too 
late to save his wife, who was ill in bed with a young babe beside her. He col- 



lected seven of his children, and sent them along the 
seized his gun, mounted his horse, and set out i 
He intended to take one before him on t -";; - ' 

the horse, and protect the rest as best 
he might: but he loved them all so 
dearly that he could not make a choice, - 
and determined that they should live 
or die together By loading and firing 
at the Indians as he i ode, he \a as able 
to protect his little ones until 
they reached a place of safety 
Mrs. Dustin, her bab^ , the 
nurse, and a young boy were 
forced to go with the Indians 
The baby was soon 
killed, but 
the others 



road ; then 
after them. 







were made to march 
through the forest for 
several days. At last, 
W'hen encamped on an 
island in the Alerrimac, 
the prisoners learned that they 
were to be tortured and put to 
death at the end of the journey, 
and resolved to try to save 
themselves. At the dead of 
night, when the Indians were asleep, the prisoners arose, and with tomaha-wks 
made way with ten of the savages. They then entered a canoe, and escaped to 
a settlement, and it was not long before Mrs. Dustin was restored to her family. 
A monument near Penacook, New Hampshire, commemorates this brave deed. 



90 



(^UEEN ANNE S WAR. 



Union of Colonies. — The northern colonies now formed 
a union to protect themselves against their enemies, and 
carry the war into Canada. An expedition was planned 
to capture Montreal, and another to capture Quebec, but 
both failed. The English took Acadia, but when peace 
was declared (1697), it was given back to the French, 




INDIAN CHIEFS IN FULL DUE8S. 



Queen Anne's War broke out four years later (1702- 
1713), and as England was fighting Spain, as well as 
France, there was a contest between the colonists in South 
Carolina, and the Spaniards and Indians in Florida. All 
the horrors of Indian warfare were renewed in the north- 
ern colonies. Village after village was burned, and men, 
women, and children were killed or carried into captivity. 

Attack on Deerfield.— It was during this war that Deer- 
field, in Western Massachusetts, was attacked and burned. 



KING GEORGE'S WAR. 91 

Fort}'' dead bodies were consumed in the flames, and over 
one hundred captives were carried off to Canada, through 
the deep snow. On the way, many perished from hunger 
and cold, and those who survived w^ere sold to the French 
as slaves, but were kindly treated by their masters. 

Among those who were taken prisoners was a clergjTnan, John Williams, his 
wife, and six children. Mrs. Williams was killed on the journey, but her husband 
was redeemed, and with five children was brought back to his old home. The 
youngest daughter was adopted by a family of Catholic Indians, embraced their 
faith, married a chief, and, though she came back to see her white friends, they 
never could persuade her to remain among them ; she preferred her own home in 
the wigwam. 

King" Geopg-e's War (1744-1748).— During this war, an 
expedition was sent against the French stronghold, Louis- 
burg. Four thousand men from Massachusetts, New Hamp- 
shire, and Connecticut, leaving their wives and children to 
plant their fields, set out to capture this "Gibraltar of 
America, " on Cape Breton Island. Although the attack- 
ing party had but twenty-one field pieces, and there were 
one hundred and seven cannon inside the fort, the place 
surrendered after a siege of but fifty days (1745). The fall 
of this stronghold gave the people of New England great 
joy and the colonial troops much confidence. At the 
treaty of peace (1748), the post was given back to the 
French, to the great sorrow of those who had conquered 
it. Tlie^^ regarded this as a "black day in their calendar." 

Topics.— Tell about — 

I. KING WILLIAM'S WAR. 

1. Indian warfare. 2. Attack on Dover. 3. Attack 
on Schenectady. 4. The story of Mrs. Dustin. 5. 
Union of colonies. 

n. QUEEN ANNE'S WAR. 

1. Attack on Deerfield. 

lU. KING GEORGE'S WAR. 

1. Sies^e of Louisbnrg. 



92 



THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 



Chapter XIX. 

THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 

But a few years had passed before the French and Eng- 
lish were again at Avar (1754-1763). In order that they 
might hold the lands, the I'rench sent ^,, 
three hundred soldiers into the valley of |; 
the Ohio, to nail upon the trees leaden 
plates bearing the 
arms of France; 
or, as some tell 
us, to bury them 
in the earth. 
They also put up 
a line of forts, 
and drove out all 
the English trad- 
ers who found 
their Avay from 
the settlements 
east of the moun- 
tains. The Eng- 
lish tried to sur- 
vey' the land which their sovereigns had granted them, 
but the French would allow no intruders, and the survey- 
ors were forced to leave. 

Washing-ton's Mission.— All this was very displeasing to 
Virginia, whose grant of land extended to the Pacific, 
and Governor Dinwiddie sent George "Washington, then a 
promising j-oung man of twenty-one, to demand an ex- 




rnr rT{'"\rn iuhmm ii \ pf'* 



Washington's expedition. 1)3 

planation of the French, and to urge them to give np the 
territory in dispute. Washington met the French com- 
mandant at a fort on French Creek, a branch of the 
Alleghany. He found him polite, but it was very clear 
that France would not yield an acre of the soil she 
claimed. Even then, the French were preparing for an ex- 
pedition against the English, and Washington was obliged 
to return without accomplishing anything to the advan- 
tage of Virginia. 

It was winter, and, leaving his horse behind, AVashington, with one compan- 
ion, made his way through the wilderness, guided by his compass. An Indian 
fired at him from a short distance, but did not hit him. In .attempting to cross 
the Alleghany on a rude raft, they were hemmed in by the floating ice, and 
Washington fell into the water, and came near being drowned. At last he 
reached home, and reported to the governor. 

Washing'ton's Expedition.— The next spring (1754), Vir- 
ginia sent out a regiment to occupy the fork of the Alle- 
ghany and Monongahela Rivers, the site of w^hat is now" 
the cit3^ of Pittsburgh. At the start, Washington was 
second in command, but Colonel Fr^'e soon died, and 
Washington became the commanding officer. On the way 
it was learned that the French had alreadj^ built a fort at 
the fork, but Washington pushed on. The French com- 
mander, who, with a company of men, had hidden among 
the rocks to surprise the English, was himself surprised 
and defeated. 

Fort Duquesne (dakane^), as it was called, was found 
too strong to capture, and Washington erected another at 
a place called Great Meadows, which was named Fort 
Necessity. Early one summer morning this fort was at- 
tacked, and, after fighting all daj^ Washington was obliged 
to surrender; but the garrison was allowed to march out 
with flag and drum, leaving only the artillery behind. 
Though defeated, the little army had done well. 



94 



THE COLONIES ATTEaiPT TO FORM A UNION. 



The Colonies Attempt to Form a Union.— The colonies 
no\Y became convinced tliat it would be best to form a 
permanent union, in order to carry on the war. They 
also tried to secure the aid of the powerful Iroquois, or 
Six Nations, west of the Hudson ; and the English govern- 
ment (1754) instructed the governors of the colonies to 
call a convention at Albany, to make a treaty with the 
Iroquois, and to form a union for defense against the 
French. 







FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS 




.(^ 



Benjamin Franklin drew up a plan for union, which was 
adopted by the delegates, but was afterwards rejected by 
the king, and by the people. Though not yet ready for 
union, the colonists, aided by their Indian allies, agreed 
well enough to carry on a vigorous war for nine long 
years. 



braddock's expedition, 95 

Removal of the Acadians.— One of the first acts of the 
war was the removal of the Acadians (1755), who dwelt 
in what is now Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. The 
Acadians wished to be at peace, and gave up their arms, 
but would not take the oath of allegiance to England; 
so, soldiers were sent from New Engl£:nd to compel them 
to leave their countr3'. In some of the villages, the men 
were called together by the ringing of the church bell, only 
to find themselves prisoners. They Avere marched to the 
ships at the point of the bayonet, and seven thousand 
men, women, and children -were driven from their homes, 
and scattered through the English colonies. 

Families were separated, so that wives and husbands, parents and children, 
sisters and brothers, never met again. Longfellow's poem, Evangeline, is based 
on this sad story. 

"Where is the thatch-roofed \'illage, the home of Acadian farmers, — 
Men whose lives glided on like rivers that watered the woodlands, 
Darkened by shadows of earth, bvit reflecting the image of heaven ? 
Waste are those pleasant farms, and the farmers forever departed ! 
Scattered like dust and leaves, when the mighty blasts of October 
Seize them, and whirl them aloft, and sprinkle them far over the ocean. 
Nothing but tradition remains of the beautiful village of Grand-Pre." 

Braddock's Expedition.— Up to this time, the colonists 
had done most of the fighting, but England was now 
aroused, and she determined to put an army into the field. 
Accordingly'-, a force of British regulars was sent out under 
General Braddock, and Washington was made one of his 
staff. Braddock knew nothing of Indian warfare, and, as 
he was proud and conceited, would take advice from no 
one. As the army was marching through the forest in 
a long line, following a narrow and rough road, it is 
said that Washington pointed out the danger of a sud- 
den attack from the savages h'ing in ambush, and urged 
Braddock to send some of the colonial troops forward as 
scouts. 



96 A BRIGHTER DAY. 

But Braddock kept his troops in regular order, moving 
through the thick forest with drums beating and colors 
flying. When within a few^ miles of Fort Duquesne (Jul}' 
8, 1755), as they were passing through a deep ravine, they 
were suddenly attacked by Indians, who fired from their 
hiding places behind trees and rocks. The regulars kept 
together, and were shot down in great numbers. The Vir- 
ginia riflemen fought Indian fashion, and saved the army 
from total destruction. 

Braddock showed great courage, but was soon mortally wounded. Washing- 
ton had two horses shot under him, and four balls passed through his coat, but 
he received not the slightest injury. After losing seven hundred out of tw^elve hun- 
dred men, the regulars fled, leaving everything to the foe. With the few colonial 
troops that remained, Washington covered their retreat. 

A Brig"hter Day. — The war continued, with two 3'ears of 
disaster for the English. William Pitt, the warm friend of 
the colonists, then became Prime Minister of England, and 
a brighter day dawned. Twenty -two thousand British 
regulars, and twenty-eight thousand colonial troops were 
put into the field against the French and their Indian 
allies. The English flag soon floated over Fort Duquesne, 
the gate of the West, and its name was changed to Fort 
Pitt, in honor of America's friend. Louisburg, the strongly 
fortified seaport of the French, was also captured. 

The next campaign (1759) carried the war to the north 
and west, and Fort Niagara, Crown Point, and Ticonder 
oga, feebly held by the French, soon surrendered to the 
English. 

Capture of Quebec. — Quebec was one of the strongest 
fortresses in the world, and General Wolfe was sent from 
England to command the forces to be sent against it. 
With eight thousand men, and a formidable fleet, he laid 
siege to the city, but the citadel, bristling with cannon, 
stood high above the reach of his guns, and he was 



THE FRENCH LOSE THEIR POSSESSIONS. 97 

repulsed at every point, until, at last, he discovered a nar- 
row path leading up the precipice. 

Sailing up the river at night, in row-boats, while Cap- 
tain Cook, of the fleet, feigned an attack at another point, 
Wolfe landed his men, and climbed b3^ the foot-path to the 
plateau above the cit^^, called the Heights of Abraham, 
where, when the morning daw^ned, the French commander, 
General Montcalm, was amazed to see an army in battle 
arra3^ The French left their fortress, and came out to 
meet their enemy in the open field. The English gained 
the victory, but General Wolfe was wounded, and died. 

In the very hour of victorj', hearing the shout, " Thcj' fly! " Wolle asked, " Who 
fl5'?" Being told that it was the French, he said, "Now, God be praised! I die 
happy." Montcalm was also mortallj' wounded, and being told of his condi- 
tion, said, "So much the better, I shall not live to see the surrender of Quebec." 
Thus died these two brave men. A monument on which is inscribed, "Wolfe and 
Montcalm," stands in the governor's garden in Quebec. 

The French Lose Their Possessions.— The next year the 
Lilies were lowered on the flag-staff at Montreal, and the 
Cross of St. George was run up in its stead. At the treaty 
of Paris (1763), all the French possessions in America, ex- 
cept a small tract around New Orleans, were ceded to 
England. The French had lost their dominion in the New 
World forever. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

I. THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 

1. Washington's mission. 

2. Washington's expedition. 

3. The attempt of the colonies to form a union. 

4. The removal of the Acadians. 

5. Braddock's expedition. 

6. A brighter day. 

7. Capture of Quebec. 

8. Loss of the French possessions. 



98 



TEST EXERCISES. 



TOPICS FOR REVIEW.* 

Historic Names. — Tell what 3'ou can of the persons whose names are 
given below. [The numbers refer to pages.] 



Leif Ericson, 9. 
Columbus, 11-17. 
Ferd. and Isabella, 14,17 
The Cabots, 18. 
Vasco da Gama, 19. 
Amerigo Vespucci, 19. 
Ponce de Leon, 20. 
Balboa, 20. 
Magellan, 21. 
Varrazzani, 21. 
Cartier, 21. 
De Soto, 22. 
Pineda, 23. 
Drake, 23. 
Raleigh, 35. 



Capt.John Smith, 37, 38 
Pocahontas, 38. 
Lord Delaware, 39. 77. 
Berkeley, 42. 
Bacon, 42. 
Henry Hudson. 46. 
Peter Minuet, 47. 
Peter Stuvvesant, 48. 
Duke of York, 48. 
John Carver, 53. 
Miles Standish, 53. 
Elder Brewster, 54. 
Massasoit, 54. 
John Winthrop, 55. 
R'g'r Williams, 56, 58-60 



Edmond Andros, 59-73- 
John Eliot, 62. 
King Philip. 63. 
Berkeley — Carteret, 71. 
William" Penn, 74-75. 
Lord Baltimore, 78. 
James Oglethorpe, 82-84 
Champlain, 80. 
La Salle, 86. 
Heimepin, 86. 
Washington, 92-95. 
Franklin, 94. 
Braddock, 95. 
General Wolfe, 96. 
General Montcalm, 97. 



Historic Places. — Locate the following, and tell what you can of the 
events with wrhich they w^ere connected. 



San Salvador, 15. 
Havana, 17. 
Labrador, 18. 
Florida, 20. 
Isthmus of Darien, 20. 
St. Lawrence, 21. 
Tampa Ba}', 22. 
Mississippi, 23. 
New Mexico, 31. 
Port Royal, 34. 
St. Augustine, 35. 



Roanoke Island, 35. 
Jamestown, 37. 
New Amsterdam, 47. 
Plymouth, 53. 
Salem, 55. 
Boston, 55. 
Hartford, 57. 
New Haven, 58. 
Providence, 60. 
Elizabethtown, 71. 
Philadelphia, 75. 



St. Mary's, 78. 
Charleston, 81. 
Savannah, 82. 
Quebec, 86. 
Dover, 61-88. 
Schenectady, 88. 
Haverhill, 89. 
Deerfield, 90. 
Louisburg, 91. 
Fort Duquesne, 93. 
Acadia, 95. 



General Topics. — Tell what you can of the following: 
Chapter I. — The Northmen. II. — The story of Columbus. HI. — Other 
discoverers and explorers. IV. — The men who dwelt here before us. V. — 
Claims of difierent nations — Settlements. VI. — How Virginia was settled. 
VII.— How the people lived. VIII.— Settlement of New^^York. IX.— Life 
in New Amsterdam. X. — The New England Colonies: Massachusetts; 
Connecticut; Rhode Island; New Hampshire. XI. — Other events in New 
England. XII. — Early days in New England. XIII. — New Jersey and the 
Quakers. XIV. — William Penn and his colony. XV. — Delaware, or New 
Sweden — Maryland. XVI.— The^ Carolinas and Georgia. XVII.— The 
French in America. XVIII. — Three Indian wars. XIX. — The French and 
Indian War. 

*See Hints to Teachers, page 5. 



CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. 99 



PART THIRD. 
THE STORY OF THE REVOLUTION. 



Chapter XX. 

CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. 

Feeling" Towards the Mother Country.— More than a 
hundred and fifty years have passed since the settlement 
of Jamestown. The thirteen colonies, whose history we 
have studied, have a population of nearly three millions, 
and all are subject to Great Britain, Although there had 
been much trouble between the colonies and the mother 
country, they still loved her, and were ready to shout, 
"God save the King" (1764). 

But a great change was to take place. The French and 
Indian -war was over, the people had time to think of 
their wrongs, and they began to feel that they were not 
ruled for their own good, but for the good of the English. 
Notwithstanding this, the colonies might have been satis- 
fied to remain as they were, had the government allowed 
them representation in parliament. 

Let us notice some of the w^rongs of which the colonists 
complained : 

Navig"ation Acts, the object of which was to compel the 
colonists to trade with England, caused much trouble, and 
the officers whose duty it was to enforce them asked for 
"Writs of Assistance," or papers which would give them 



100 MANUFACTURES PROHIBITED. 

the right to search any man's house or store for smuggled 
goods. The colonists held that, "Every man's house is 
his castle," and stoutly resisted the authorities. 

Manufactures Prohibited. — The manufacture of steel and 
bar iron for their own use had been forbidden, and it was 
said that the colonists had no right to "make even a nail 
for a horseshoe." Iron works were declared "common 
nuisances; " and the Carolinians were not allowed to man- 
ufacture staves, turpentine, or tar. 

Trade Crippled. — Woolen goods were not to be sent from 
one colony to another; and a heavy duty was placed on 
sugar, rum, and molasses brought from foreign lands. In 
these unjust ways Great Britain sought to force her colo- 
nies to buy their goods of her. 

Lest the colonists should multiply their flocks of sheep and weave their own 
cloth, they might not use a ship, nor a boat, nor a carriage, nor even a pack- 
horse, to carry wool, or any manufacture of which wool forms a part, across 
the line of one province to another. Thej' could not land wool from the nearest 
islands, nor ferry it across a river, nor even ship it to England. A British sailor, 
finding himself in want of clothes in their harbors, might not buy there more than 
fortj' shillings worth of woolens. 

Where was there a house in the colonies that did not possess the English 
Bible? And yet to print that Bible in British America would have been a piracy; 
and the Bible, though printed in German and in a native savage dialect, was 
never printed there in English till the land became free. 

That the country, which was the home of the beaver, might not manufacture 
its own hats, no man in the plantations could be a hatter or a journeyman at 
that trade unless he had served an apprenticeship of seven years. No hatter 
might employ a negro or more than two apprentices. No American hat might be 
sent from one plantation to another,'or be loaded upon any horse, cart, or car- 
riage for conveyance. 

America abounded in iron ores of the best quality, as well as in wood and 
coal ; slitting-mills, steel furnaces, and plating forges, to work with a tilt-hammer, 
were prohibited in the colonies as "nuisances." — Bancroft.. 

Taxation, Without Representation.— The French and In- 
dian war had cost the British government a large sum of 
money; the colonists were required to help pay the debt, 
and the Encrlish claimed the right to tax them for this, 



OPPOSITION TO THE STAMP ACT. 101 

and other purposes, without their consent. The colonists 
had no representatives in ParHament, and they said, "Tax- 
ation, without representation, is tyranny." 

The Stamp Act. — In order to raise a revenue from the 
colonists, a "Stamp Act" was passed (1765). It required 
that deeds, bills, notes, receipts, leases, newspapers, and 
pamphlets should be written or printed on stamped paper, 
to be sold by officers of the crown, the money to go to 
the government. 

Opposition to the Stamp Act. — The first sign of opposition 
to the " Stamp Act " came from Virginia. Patrick Henry, a 
member of the assembly then in session, offered resolu- 
tions deuNdng the right of Parliament to tax the colonies. 
James Otis, an eloquent lawyer of Boston, led the opposi- 
tion in New England. He said, "I am determined to 
sacrifice estate, ease, health, applause, and even life, to the 
sacred calls of my country." A congress of delegates from 
nine colonies met and drew up a "declaration of rights." 
Societies, called " Sons and Daughters of Liberty," were 
organized; merchants agreed not to buy British goods; 
men and women promised to wear home-made clothes, and 
said they would "eat nothing, drink nothing, wear noth- 
ing, that came from Great Britain." The stamp act was 
to go into force on the first of November, but not a stamp 
was bought or sold in any of the colonies, and, in some 
instances, the officers appointed to sell them were mobbed. 

Repeal of the Stamp Act. — A year after its passage the 
act was repealed, and there was great rejoicing. In Bos- 
ton, bells were rung, flags were run up, and houses were 
illuminated. Good feeling towards England was restored, 
and trade was resumed. 

"On the evening of May 20, 1766, the eitizens of Boston celebrated the repeal 
of the stamp act by hanging one hundred and eight lanterns on the old Liberty 



102 



BOSTON MASSACRE. 



tre<» on Essex street. One of the lanterns, which, according to its inscription, was 
hun^ on 'the west bough, opposite Frog Lane,' has been in the Hunneman family 
ever since, and has just been presented to the Bostonian Society by the widow and 
children of Joseph H. Hunneman, of Roxburj'." 

The Tax on Tea and Other Articles.— But another act 
was soon passed bj^ Parliament, laving a tax on tea, glass, 
paper, and a few other articles. This caused fresh excite- 
ment, and troops were sent over to New York and Bos- 
ton to keep the people quiet and secure obedience to the law, 
Boston Massacre.— The citizens of Boston did all they 
could to make the soldiers uncomfortable. Quarrels took 
place between them and the "Red Coats," and one day a 
crowd of men and boys insulted the city guard, and a 
fight ensued. Several citizens were wounded, and three 

were killed. This was 
called the "Boston Mas- 
sacre." 

A gust of smoke overspread the 
scene. It rose heavily, as if loath 
to reveal the dreadful spectacle be- 
neath it. Eleven of the sons of New 
England lay stretched upon the 
street. Some, sorely wounded, were 
struggling to rise again. Others 
stirred not, nor groaned, for they 
were past all pain. Blood was 
streaming upon the snow ; and that 
purple stain, in the midst of King's 
street, though it melted awaj' in 
the next day's sun, was never for- 
gotten or forgiven by the people. — 
Hawthorne. 




FANEl'IL HALL. 



The massacre aroused 
deep feeling in all the colonies. Faneuil Hall, "The Cradle 
of Liberty," was filled with indignant citizens, who, through 
their leader, Samuel Adams, compelled the governor, Thomas 
Hutchinson, to withdraw the troops. They were removed 
to a fort in the harbor, called the Castle. 



BOSTON PORT BILL. 103 

Boston Tea Party.— So much trouble arose, that the tax 
was removed from everything except tea, and this was 
retained only to show that the government had the right 
to tax her colonies. One summer day, ships loaded with 
tea for Boston sailed into the bay. The people did not 
w^ish the tea to be landed; meetings were held, and there 
w-as hot debate. At length, Samuel Adams stood up in 
the dimly lighted church, and said, "This meeting can do 
nothing more to save the country." With a stem shout, 
the assembly broke up, and fifty men, disguised as Indians, 
hurried down to the wharf, each man with a hatchet in 
his hand. The ships were boarded, the chests of tea 
brought on deck, broken up, and flung into the bay. 

The citizens looked on in silence. So still was the crowd that no sound was 
heard but the stroke of the hatchet, and the splash of the shattered tea-chests as 
they fell into the water. This was the work of what was called " The Boston Tea 
Party" (December 16, 1773). At New York and Philadelphia the ports werfc 
closed, and the ships were forbidden to enter; at Charleston, the tea was placed in 
damp cellars and left to spoil. 

Boston Port Bill.— The British government punished Bos- 
ton by forbidding the landing or shipping of goods at its 
wharves. Many workingmen were thus thrown out of 
emploj^ment, and there was great distress, but sympathy 
came from all quarters. Marblehead and Salem offered 
the use of their wharves; a large flock of sheep was sent 
from Connecticut ; wheat was forwarded from New York ; 
rice and money from Georgia. 

First Continental Congress.— Meetings were held in all 
parts of the country, and delegates were chosen to a Gen- 
eral Congress, which met at Carpenter's Hall, Philadelphia 
(September 5, 1774), Every colony but Georgia was rejD- 
resented. Among the fifty-three delegates* who were in 
attendance were such men as George Washington, Patrick 
Henr3% Samuel Adams, and John Adams. This Congress did 



104 GETTING READY FOR WAR. 

not ask for independence. A paper was drawn up, telling 
the king their wrongs, and imploring him to remove them. 
They also appealed to the people of England, whom they 
still regarded as brothers. But the king made no reply, 
and Parliament would not allow the paper to be read in 
its hearing. The king made up his mind to force the colo- 
nists to submit, and a feet and an army of ten thousand 
men were sent over. 

Getting- Ready for War.— Everywhere in the colonies, com- 
panies of soldiers, called "Minute Men," were now formed 
and drilled ; the sound of fife and drum was heard on every 
hand; balls were cast, cartridges made, and ammunition 
stored in places of safety. The British general became 
alarmed, fortified Boston Neck, and conveyed the powder 
in the magazine at Charlestown and Cambridge, to Boston 
for safety. 

A rumor went abroad over the country that the British 
ships were firing on Boston, and, though it proved to be 
false, in two days thirty thousand minute men were on 
their way to the city. Only a spark was needed to kindle 
the flames of war, and the terrible roar of battle was soon 
heard. 

Topics. — Tell what you can of — 

1. CAUSES OF THE REVOLUTION. 

1. Feeling towards the mother country. 2. Naviga- 
tion laws. 3. Manufactures prohibited. 4. Trade 
crippled. 5. Taxation, without representation. 6. 
The stamp act. 7. Opposition to the stamp act. 
8. Repeal of the stamp act. 9. The tax on tea 
and other articles. 10. The Boston massacre. 11. 
The Boston "Tea Party." 12. The Boston port 
bill. 

II. THE FIRST CONTINE.NTAL CO.NGRESS. 
III. GETTING READY FOR WAR. 



THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR. 105 



Chapter XXI. 

THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR. 

"They left the plowshare in the mould, 
Their flocks and herds without a fold, 
The sickle in the unshorn grain, 
The com half-garnered on the plain ; 
And mustered, in their simple dress, 
For wrongs to seek a stem redress. 
To right those wrongs, come weal, come woe, 
To perish, or o'ercome their foe." 

March of British Troops.— On the evening of April 18, 
1775, General Gage, who commanded the British troops 
in Boston, sent out eight hundred regulars to destroy 
some military stores which the colonists had collected at 
Concord, twenty miles away. Starting near midnight, 
they hoped their coming w ould be unexpected ; but as they 
moved quietly along the road in the bright moonlight, 
they heard the clang of bells in the Arillage steeple and 
knew that the alarm had been given. 

Paul Revere's Ride. — The patriots kept watch at Charlestown, and when they 
saw the signal light in the steeple of the old North Church, in Boston, thej' knew 
the British troops were moving, and messengers -were sent to give the alarm. 
Paul Revere rowed over from Boston to Charlestown in a boat, and was soon 
galloping on horseback through the towns on the road to Lexington and Con- 
cord, warning the people at every house of the coming of the soldiers. 

"A hurry of hoofs in the village street, 
A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark. 
And beneath from the pebbles in passing, a spark, 

Struck out by a steed fljring fearless and fleet." {See page 272.) 

Lexing-ton and Concord.— When the British reached Lex- 
ington (4 o'clock, April 19), they fired on a company of 
minute men, a little band of farmers gathered on the 
green, killing eight and wounding ten. This was the first 



106 



LEXINGTON AND CONCORD. 



blood shed in the Revolutionary War. At Concord the 
stores Avhich the patriots had not removed to the woods 
for safety were destroyed by the British, after wliich they 




MAP 

ILLUSTRATING THE 

iEYOLUTIONARY WAR. 



to 
return. But they 
were not allowed 
to go back so quiet- 
ly as they came. The 
whole country was 
roused, and the minute 
men came hurr^-ing from 
all directions. They 
lay in ambush behind 
logs, trees, rocks, and 
Nvalls, fired at their foes 
from every hiding place 
along the road, and soldiers 
re constantly falling, wounded 
or killed. At last, the regulars became 
alarmed, and almost ran in their retreat. 
When they reached Charlestown that even- 
ing, the British had lost, in killed and wounded, nearly 
three hundred men. The American loss was less than one 
hundred. 




TROOPS ABOUT BOSTON. 107 

Rally of the Colonists.— The news of the battle of Lex- 
ington, as it was called, spread like wald-fire into all the 
colonies, and when the Massachusetts Committee of Safety 
sent out an appeal for troops, farmers left their plows, 
blacksmiths their forges, and carpenters their shops, for 
the scene of danger. In a short time, from fifteen to twenty 
thousand men were gathered around Boston. 

Ticonderoga. — Nearlj- a month later (May 10, 1775), Ethan Allen, at the head 
of a baud of "Green Mountain Boys," made a sudden attack on Fort Ticon- 
deroga, near the head of Lake Champlain, capturing it without the loss of a man. 
By this victory the Americans gained cannon, powder, and other much-needed 
stores. 

Troops About Boston.— The troops gathered about Bos- 
ton were undisciplined ; thej^ had but few cannon, and 
little powder, and their guns w^ere mosth' common fowl- 
ing-pieces, without bayonets. There was no commander- 
in-chief, but the troops from Massachusetts were placed 
under General Ward; those from New Hampshire, under 
General Stark; those from Rhode Island, under General 
Green; Generals Putnam and Spencer commanded those 
from Connecticut. 

Battle of Bunker Hill.— On the night of June 16, with a 
force of twelve thousand men. Colonel Prescott was sent 
to throw up earthworks on Bunker Hill, but it was de- 
cided to fortify Breed's Hill, which was nearer Boston. 
Midnight came before a sod was turned, but when General 
Gage looked out the next morning, he saw a strong in- 
trenchment upon the heights, and swarms of men still at 
w^ork. 

The British ships at once opened fire upon the works, 
and, later in the da3% three thousand regulars moved up the 
hill against them. Twice the regulars were driven back, 
with great loss. A third attack was then made, but, as 
the Americans were nearly out of powder, they could fire 



108 



LOSS OF GENERAL WARREN. 



but one volley. They then fought with their guns used as 
clubs, and with stones, until compelled to give way at the 
po4nt of the ba3^onet. 

The British captured the fort at the cost of a thousand 
men, but the Americans, who had lost less than half that 
number, had learned that raw troops could face the best 
men England could send against them, and they regarded 

the battle of 
l# Bunker Hill 

^ . _ Ha^nj«^*..>^\v 1. ... ..**a:g«TO»i.ife.^^^,j^ ,^g almost a 

victory, and 
were greatly 
encouraged. 

Loss of General 
Warren.— Among 
the patriots who 
fell at Bunker Hill, 
was Joseph War- 
ren, a physician of 
rareskill, who had 
worked earnestly 
and effectively for 
the interests of the 
colonists, and was 
chairman of the 
Committee of Safe- 
ty. Just before the 
battle began, he 
went to the re- 
doubt on Breed's 
Hill with a mus- 
ket in his hand, to 
fight as a volun- 
teer in the ranks. 

When a leading patriot said, " I beg you not to expose your person. Dr. War- 
ren, for your life is too valuable to us," the Doctor replied, "I know that I 
may fall, but where's the man who does not think it glorious and delightful to 
die for his country?" 

Washing-ton Made Commander-in-Chief.— On the day 
when Ticonderoga Avas captured, the second Continental 




WASHINCTON ELM. 



[On a granite tablet at the foot of the elm is inscribed, " In- 
dcr this tree Washington first took command of the American 
array, July 3, 1775."] 



CONDITIO X OF THE ARMY. 109 

Congress assembled at Philadelphia. It decided to raise 
an army of twenty thousand men, and, by unanimous 
vote, George Washington was chosen commander-in-chief 
of all the patriot forces. Washington joined the army at 
Boston, and took command under the great elm in Cam- 
bridge (July 3, 1775). 

Condition of the Army. — The army was but a mixed 
multitude of people, mostly without uniforms, and armed 
with guns the3^ had brought from home, hardly any two 
of which were alike. Each had his o\vn powder-horn and 
bullets, and such pro\nsions as he brought with him. A 
few of the troops had tents, but more lived in huts of 
boards, stones, or turf, built with their own hands. There 
were but seven rounds of powder to a man. By degrees 
the army was drilled and supplied with many things which 
were sorely needed, but powder continued scarce. 

The British Driven from Boston.— The British were be- 
sieged in Boston, until Washington succeeded in planting 
a strong force on Dorchester Heights, commanding the 
harbor and city. This compelled General Howe to embark 
his army (Alarch 17, 1776), and he quitted Boston forever. 
Over a thousand royalists sailed with him to Halifax, 
most of them never to return. 

Larg-e Forces Sent to America.— When the news of Bun- 
ker Hill reached England, the government resolved to sub- 
due the colonies at any cost. All trade with them was 
strictly forbidden, and any one was authorized to seize 
their ships and cargoes on the sea. A force of sixteen 
thousand Hessians from Germany was hired to come over 
and aid the British, who concluded to place an army of 
fifty thousand men in America. To meet this large number 
of trained soldiers the colonists had only about twelve 
thousand men, but they would not now give up. 



110 THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. The march of British troops. 

2. Paul Kevere's ride. 

3. Lexington and Concord. 

4. Rally of the colonists. 

5. Ticonderoga. 

6. Troops about Boston. 

7. Battle of Bunker Hill. 

8. Washington made commander-in-chief. 

9. Condition of the army. 

10. The Bi-itish driven from Boston. 

11. Large forces sent to America. 



Chapter XXII. 

THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 

Up to this time the colonists considered themselves sub- 
jects of Great Britain. They had fonght for their rights, 
but had not sought independence. Wise men now saw 
that the time had come to free themselves from British 
rule, and, though there was much opposition, on the 4th 
of July, 1776, after a long debate, the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence was adopted by the Continental Congress, at 
Philadelphia. 

"American Independence was not an act of sudden passion, nor the work of one 
man, or one assembly. It had been discussed in every part of the countrj* bj' farm- 
ers and merchants, by mechanics and planters, by the fishermen and backwoods- 
men ; in town-meetings, and from the pulpit; at social gatherings, and around 
camp fires; in newspapers, and in pamphlets; in country conventions, and confer- 
ences of committees; in colonial congresses and assemblies. The decision was 
put off, only to ascertain the voice of the people," and that voice had been 
heard. 

On the 12th of June, of the same summer, Virginia had adopted a declara- 
tion of rights, which covered nearly the same ground as the Declaration of 
Independence ; and other colonies had framed bills of rights, in reference to their 
relations to Great Britain. Every colony had demanded independence before 
that memorable 4th of July, and Congress did but express the will of the majority 
of the people. 



THE LIBERTY BELL. 



Ill 



What the Declaration Says.— The Declaration of Inde- 
pendence says that all men^ are bom equal, and have the 
same right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. 
It declared the colonies free and inde- 
pendent states, and to support the Dec- 
laration the signers said, " We pledge to 
each other, our lives, our fortunes, and 
our sacred honor." 




LIBERTY BELL. 



The Liberty Bell.— in the steeple oi" the old state 
House, where Congress met, was a bell on which was 
insci-ibed, "Proclaim liberty throughout all the land, 
unto all the inhabitants thereof." On the morning of 
Jiily Fourth, the bell-ringer went to his post above, 
placing his son below, to tell him when the Declaration 
w^as adopted. The bell-ringer waited, hour after hour, 
saying to himself, as time w^ore on, "They will never 
do it! They will never do it!" All at once, he heard his boy clapping nis nands 
and shouting, "Ring! Ring!!" Grasping the iron tongue of the bell, the jld 
man swung it to and fro, the bells of the city and the great crowds m the streets 
re-echoing the glad soxinds. 

"How they shouted! What rejoicing! 
How the old bell shook the air, 
Till the clang of freedom ruffled 
The calm, gliding Delaware! 
How the bonfires, and the torches. 
Illumed the night's repose. 
And from the flames, like Phoenix, 
Fair Liberty arose ! 

"That old bell now is silent. 
And hushed its iron tongue. 
But the spirit it awakened 
Still lives, — forever young. 
And while we greet the sunlight. 
On the Fourth of each July, 
"We'll ne'er forget the bell-man. 
Who, 'twixt the earth and sky. 

Rung out OUR INDEPENDENCE, 

Which, please God, shall never die!" — Anon. 

How the Declaration Was Received.— Over all the colo- 
nies the Declaration was hailed with joy. The different 
divisions of the army listened to its reading with loud huz- 



112 



THE BRITISH TAKE NEW YORK. 



^? 



zas; in New York the leaden statue of King George was 
torn from its pedestal by the people, and cast into bullets, 
to shoot at the king's soldiers; at Boston the Declaration 
was read in Faneuil Hall, while the roar of cannon shook 
the city ; Charleston and Savannah had their illuminations. 
The British Take New York.— Washington thought that 
the British would be likely' to occupy New York, and he 
moved his little army to its defense. Thirty 
thousand British troops encamped on Staten 
Island, a few miles from the city, and a pow- 
erful fleet sailed into the ba3^ A battle was 
fought on Long Island, in which the Ameri- 
cans were defeated, after a hard struggle 
(August 27, 1776). 

Washing-ton's Retreat.— The Americans were 
obliged to leave New Y^ork, and they retreated, 
step by step, through New Jersey, followed 
closely b}' the enemy, under Lord Comwallis, 
who reached the east bank of the Delaware 
just as Washington landed on the west. 

The retreat greatly encouraged the British, 
but it cast a deep gloom over all the colo- 
nies. YVashington had but a few thousand 
men at his command, and they were poorly 
armed, fed, and clothed, and without sufficient 
blankets or tents. A British officer said, "In 
a regiment there is scarce one whole pair of 
breeches." As they marched towards Phila- 
delphia, the people looked with pity upon their 
ragged defenders, and with fear upon the brilliant host of 
pursuers. 

Battle of Trenton.— Winter came on, and the British 
army was scattered among the villages of New Jersey, fear- 



WASUINGTON S SWORD 
AND STAFF. 



WASHINGTON SEEKS AID. 



113 



ing nothing from the despised Americans. A few miles 
from Philadelphia, in the village of Trenton, was a force of 
fifteen hundred Hessians. On Christmas evening (1776), 
Washington crossed the Delaware with twenty-four hun- 
dred men to make an attack upon these troops. The 
night was dark, and so cold that two of his soldiers were 
frozen to death. The route of the army could be traced 
by blood left upon the snow by bare feet. At dawn, the 
Americans burst upon the astonished Hessians, who had 
been drinking on the day before, and were not ready to 
fight. Their commander v^ras slain, and the soldiers laid 
down their arms. 

Washington Seeks Aid.— The term for which many of 
Washington's men had enlisted was nearly at an end, and 

they were weary, and longed 
for home. Washington had no 
money to pay them or to offer 
as a bounty to induce them to 
remain, and his little army was 
likely to melt away. He had 
already pledged his own pri- 
vate fortune, and in his sore 
distress he applied to Robert 
Morris, of Philadelphia, for 
aid. 



Robert Morris was bom in Eng- 
land in 1734. He was a member 
of the Continental Congress and a 
signerof the Declaration. He made 
free use of his private credit to sup- 
port the government, and in 1781 
supplied almost everything to car- 
ry on the campaign against Corn- 
wallis. Morris was appointed Su- 
perintendent of Finance, and Secre- 
tary of the Treasurjs under the 
Confederation ; assisted in framing 
the Constitution, and served as the 
first United States Senator from 
Pennsylvania. He, with his part- 
ner, sent to Canton, China, the 
first American ship ever seen in 
that port. In his old age, he lost 
his fortune, and was in prison for 
debt for some time. Died in Phila- 
delphia in 1806. 



On New Year'smoming (1777), Robert 
Morris went from house to house in Phil- 
adelphia, rousing people from their beds 
to borrow money of them ; and early in 
the day he sent Washington fifty thous- 
and dollars, with the message: "Whatever I can do shall be done for the good 
of the service; if further occasional supplies of money are necessarj', you may 
depend upon my exertions, either in a public or private capacity." — Bancroft. 

Battle of Princeton.— Two days later (January 3d), an- 
other victory was gained over the British, at Princeton. 



114 



INVASION OF BURGOYNE. 



These triumphs restored confidence in Washington, and 
revived the drooping spirits of the colonists. After the 
battle of Princeton, Washington went into w^inter quarters 
near Morristown, Mrhere, protected by rivers, hills, and 
woods, his little army was not likly to be attacked by the 
enemy. 

The Starry Flag. — Up to the summer of this year a variety of flaj^s had been 
■used by the colonists, but it was thought best for the United States to have one 
of its own, and Con- 
gress voted (June 17, 
1777) "that the flag 
of the thirteen United 
States be thirteen 
stripes, alternate red 
and white, and the 
union be thirteen 
white stars in the blue 
field." This is the flag 
that now waves over 
every United States 
ship, camp, or build- 
ing, except that for 
every State added to 
the Union a new star 
has been placed on the 
flag ; while the thir- our country's flag. 

teen stripes still remind us of the old thirteen colonies that won their independ- 
ence. — UiQginson. 

Flag of the free heart's hope and home — 

By angel hands to valor given! 
Thy stars have lit the welkin dome, 

And all thy hues were born in heaven. 
Forever float that standard sheet! 

Where breathes the foe but falls before us, 
With freedom's soil beneath our feet, 

And freedom's banner streaming o'er us! — >/. Rodman Drake. 

Invasion of Burg-oyne.— In June, a large force consist- 
ing of British, Canadians, and Germans, under General 
Burgoyne, came from Canada by way of Lake Champlain, 
intending to take Albany, and then form a junction with 
the British army at New York. In this way the enemy 




BURGOYNE CAPTURED. 115 

hoped to separate and weaken the colonies. The Indians 
were invited to join Burgoyne. Ticonderoga was taken, 
and a strong party was sent over to Bennington, Ver- 
mont, to destroy military stores collected there. This party 
was defeated by a body of militia led by General Stark, 
who had seen service at Blinker Hill. As Stark saw the 
enemy forming for battle, he shouted to his soldiers, " There 
are the red-coats; we must beat them to-day, or Molly 
Stark will be a widow!" 

Burg-oyne Captured.— Burgoyne encamped with his whole 
army at Saratoga, w^hile General Gates, who was in com- 
mand of the Americans, fortified Bemis Heights, a little to 
the south, where two battles were fought, the Americans 
bravely holding their ground. After this the British re- 
treated, but they were soon hemmed in by the forces of 
General Gates, and (October 16, 1777) Burgoyne's army of 
nearly six thousand men was forced to surrender. Among 
the stores captured were forty-two cannon, between four 
thousand and five thousand muskets, and a large supply 
of ammunition. This was a great victory for the Ameri- 
cans, and England keenly felt the shame of the defeat. 

Topics.— Speak of— 

I. THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 

1. What the Declaration sa3's. 

2. The liberty bell. 

3. How the Declaration was received. 

II. EVENTS FOLLOWING THE DECLARATION. 

1. The capture of New York by the British. 

2. Washington's retreat. 

3. Battle of Trenton. 

4. Washington seeking aid. 

5. Battle of Princeton. 

6. The starry flag. 

III. INVASION OF BURGOYNE. 

1. Capture of Burgoyne. 



FROM BRANDYWINE TO YORKTOWN. 



117 



Chapter XXIII. 



FROM BRANDYWINE TO YORKTO^;7N. 



Brandy wine and Germantown.— When the spring (1777) 
came, Howe, wishing to capture Philadelphia, took his 
troops from New York b}^ sea, to the head 
of Chesapeake Ba3% where they were landed. 
Washington awaited their coming on the 
banks of a small river called the Brandy- 
wine. Here he was attacked by a supe- 
rior force, and, though the Americans 
fought wath great courage, they w^ere com- 
pelled to retreat, and the British soon en- 
tered Philadelphia. This w^as knowm as the 
battle of Brandy wine (September 11, 1777). 
Not long after, Washington attacked the 
British at Germantown, but was repulsed. 

The Army at Valley Forge.— Winter was 
coming on, and the w^ell-fed, well-clad Brit- 
ish army v^ent into comfortable quarters 
at Philadelphia. Washington retired to 
Valley Forge, among the hills, some twenty 
miles awa^^ Here rude log huts and ragged 
tents were put up by the soldiers, many 
of w^hom were w^ithout blankets, or even straw^ for beds, 
and were obliged to sit up all night b}^ their fires to 
keep warm. For a time, more than a thousand men 
were without shoes, and they might have been tracked 
through the snow by the blood from their frosted feet. 
Even the sick often lav on the bare around. Food was 




BRITISH GRENADIER. 



118 



DISTINGUISHED HELPERS. 



scarce, the men were seldom 

paid, and the mone^^ they did 

receive had Httle value. 
Distlng-uished Helpers.— The 

struggle of the colonists had 

roused the sympathy of man^' 

people in Europe, and a num- 
ber of brave soldiers came 

over to help fight the battle 

of liberty. Among them were 

Marquis de La Fa\'ette, Count 

Pulaski, Baron De Kalb, Baron 

Steuben, and Kosciusko. These 

officers, who were used to the 

luxuriesof courts, were at Val- 
ley Forge with Washington, 

and the buildings where they 

lived were, as La Fayette 

wrote to a friend in Paris, "no ga^-er than a dungeon." 
Aid from France. — From the first, the French people 

had been in sympath\^ with the Americans, but the king 
would do nothing to aid ; and three 
commissioners, one of whom was Ben- 
jamin Franklin, were sent to France, 
and, on the 6th of February (1778), 
the French Government acknowledged 
the independence of the colonies, and 
agreed to help them in their fight. The 
news of this alliance was received in 
America with great jo}'. When the 
British government heard that France 

was to aid America, it was alarmed, and sent commissioners 

to offer peace, if the colonists would lay down their arms ; 



La Fayette. — The Marquis de La 
Fayette was of an ancient French 
faniil}-. His father ^vas killed in 
battle, and on his mother's death 
he became heir to large estates. 
Feeling a deep interest inthe strug- 
gles of the colonies, he concluded to 
join their cause; fitted out a ves- 
sel at his own expense, in which 
he crossed the sea ; served as a 
major-general without pay, fur- 
nishing clothing and camp equi- 
page to the need^- jjatriots out 
of his own private means ; was 
wounded in the battle at Brandy- 
wine, and fought bravely on other 
fields; conducted the campaign 
which ended in a victory at York- 
town. He after\vards held impor- 
tant positions in France, and used 
his infiuence to procure the aboli- 
tion of slaverj' in French colo- 
nies, freeing and educating his own 
slaves in Caj-enne, South Ainerica. 
Died at Paris, May 20, 1834, in 
his 77th j^ear. 




^/^yf^^/^j^y^^y^y^// 



RETREAT OF THE BRITISH. 



119 



Baron Steuben belonged to a no- 
ble family, ^Yhich had been distin- 
guished in the annals of Prus- 
sia. He was thoroughly edu- 
cated ; had been on the staff" of 
Frederick the Great, and had held 
other positions of honor in his na- 
tive land. Leaving an ample for- 
tune, he came to America, landing 
at Portsmouth, New Hampshire, 
latein November, 1777. John Han- 
cock, of Boston, furnished Steu- 
ben's party with sleighs, drivers, 
and saddle horses, for the jour- 
ney of more than four hundred 
miles to York, Pennsylvania, where 
Congress was in session. He was 
received by Congress with distin- 
guished honors, after which he lost 
no time in joining Washington at 
Valley Forge. 

Steuben saw that the army 
needed nothing so much as train- 
ing, and he took his musket in 
hand and showed what was to be 
done. From morning till night he 
worked, and the camp was turned 
into a huge militarj' training 
school. The men were taught lio^v 
to advance, to retreat, to change 
front, to use the bayonet — how, in 
short, to perform all the raijid and 
accurate movements for which the 
Prussian army was famous. After 
three months (May, 1778), Steu- 
ben \vas appointed inspector-gen- 
eral of the army, in which position 
he saved the country immense 
sums of money, by preventing the 
loss of arms and waste of every 
description. In consideration of 
his services, Congress gave him an 
annuity of two thousand five hun- 
dred dollars. The state of New 
York gave him sixteen thousand 
acres of wild land in Oneida 
Count}', on which he built a log 
house, in -which he lived a quiet 
life until November 28th, 1794., 
when he died, at the age of sixtj'- 
four vears. 



but Congress v/ould now ac- 
cept nothing short of inde- 
pendence. 

Retreat of the British.— 
General Howe was called to 
England, and Sir Henry Clin- 
ton was sent to take his place 
(May, 1778). Fearing that a 
French fleet might blockade 
the Delaware and shut his 
army up in Philadelphia, Clin- 
ton retreated overland to New 
York. He v^as closely followed 
by Washington, who overtook 
him at Monmouth, where 
there was a sharp engage- 
ment. The battle continued 
till nightfall, and Washington 
waited, anxiously for morn- 
ing, hoping for a complete vic- 
tory. But the enem}^ stole 
awa3' in the darkness, and 
escaped defeat. 

Treacliery of Lee. — in the battle of 
Monmouth the plans of Washington 
were foiled by the treachery of General 
Charles Lee who was in command of 
the American advance, six thousand 
strong. Lee was to gain the flank of 
the retreating enemy and make a vigor- 
ous attack, while Washington was to 
come up in the rear with the other divi- 
sion of the army to complete the victory. 
Lee's force was ample for the task as- 
signed it, and there was good reason 
for the hope that the flower of the 
British army might Ije captured or de- 



120 OPERATIONS IN THE SOUTH. 

stroyed. l.ce held an excellent position for attack, but the struggle had scarcely- 
begun when he ordered a retreat, murmuring something about the impossibility 
of standing against British regulars. 

Learning of this order, Washington hastened to the scene. "What is the 
meaning of all this?" he shouted, addressing Lee. "His tone was so fierce and 
his look so threatening that the traitor shook in his stirrups, and could at first 
make no answer." For his conduct at Monmouth and his very disrespectful 
letters to Washington, Lee was suspended from command in the army. Nearly 
eighty years had passed before a document was discovered which shows that he 
was a selfish adventurer, who desired to be first in command, and intrigued 
with the enemies of our country. 

Molly Pitcher. — it was in this fight that an American artillerj'man, named 
Pitcher, was killed while loading his cannon. His wife, Alolly, who was bringing 
him some water, immediately took his place at the gun, and faithfully performed 
his duties during the continuance of the battle. After that she went bj' the name 
of Captain Molly. Washington made her a sergeant, and Congress granted her 
half-pay for life. 

Operations in the South. — Finding that it was not eas}^ 
to subdue the Northern States, General CHnton sent a force 
of two thousand men to the South, Avhere, as there were 
more slaves and fewer whites, he hoped the country might 
be easily conquered. Just at the close of the 3'ear (Decem- 
ber 29, 1778), Savannah was captured b}^ this expedition. 
The defeated i^atriots escaped by way of the river, and 
found refuge in Charleston, South Carolina. This was the 
only real conquest made by the British during that 3'ear. 

Capture of Stony Point.— The following year (1779) 
brought no great victories. Mad Anthony Wayne recap- 
tured Stony Point on the Hudson, which had been strongly 
fortified by General Clinton, the patriots securing ord- 
nance and stores valued at one hundred and fifty thousand 
dollars. The Americans, aided by Count d'Estaing, in com- 
mand of the French, beseiged Savannah, but the^' were 
unable to carry the works, and had to retire. Here the 
brave Count Pulaski, struck by a grape-shot, was borne 
dying from the field. 

A Naval Victory. — Paul Jones, in command of the Poor 
Richard, an American privateer, was cruising off the coast 



EVENTS IN THE SOUTH. 121 

of Scotland when he fell in with the British frigate Sarapis, 
carrying forty-four guns. For an hour and a half the 
battle was kept up at short range, when Jones ran his ship 
alongside and lashed her to the Sarapis. The fight went 
on, hand-to-hand, until the Sarapis struck her colors. 
Jones then placed his men on the Sarapis and the Poor 
Richard soon sank. Though the captain of the Sarapis 
lost his ship, he fought so bravely that he was given the 
title of knight. 

Events in the South. — During the following year (1780) 
little was done in the North ; but there was much activity in 
the South, where the patriots suffered many reverses. After 
a long siege b^^ land and sea, the British captured Charles- 
ton (May 12, 1780), the principal city of the South. There 
was then no regular army to oppose them, and they soon 
swept over the state. General Clinton, who was in com- 
mand, sailed for New York, leaving Lord Comwallis to 
hold the conquered territory. 

But the British \vere not allow^ed peaceable possession. 
Bands of patriots, led by Marion, Pickens, and Sumter, 
threaded the forests, by paths known only to themselves, 
making night attacks on the foe, and striking where least 
expected. Marion gained the name of "Swamp Fox," and 
the British complained because he would not meet them 
in the open field, "to fight like a gentleman." 

SONG OF MARION'S MEN. 
Our band is few, but true and tried, our leader frank and bold ; 
The British soldier trembles when Marion's name is told. 
Our fortress is the good green wood, our tent the cypress tree ; 
We know the forest round us as seamen know the sea. — Bryant. 

After the fall of Charleston, General Gates was placed in 
command in the Soiith, but his forces were badly beaten 
by Cornwallis at the battle of Camden. Here Baron de 
Kalb, a brave oflficer who suffered with Washington at 



122 THE TREASON OF ARNOLD. 

Yalle\' Forge, remained on the field trying to rally the fly- 
ing men, imtil he received eleven wounds and fell in the 
agony of death. 

The Treason of Arnold.— In the midst of general gloom 
it became known that a leading patriot, Benedict Arnold, 
had turned traitor. It was found that Arnold, who had 
taken part in the war from the beginning, and had shown 
great braver^^ in leading troops through the forests to 
Quebec, and in commanding a force on Lake Champlain, 
had for a long time been in secret correspondence with Sir 
Henry Clinton, the British commander-in-chief. Arnold was 
stationed at West I^oint, a stronghold and very important 
post on the Hudson. He proposed to surrender this fort 
to the British, and came near succeeding. 

Capture of Andre. — One day three A^oung men stopped a 
man on the road, and he, thinking them to be loyalists, 
told them that he was a British officer. This man was 
Major Andre, aid-de-camp to Sir Henry Clinton. In his 
boots were found papers from General Arnold, giving the 
terms of surrender. Andre' offered his captors a gold watch 
and large sums of money for his release, but they refused 
to accept the bribe, and gave him up to the military au- 
thorities. He was tried by court-martial tind hanged as 
a spy. Arnold escaped, joined the British, and fought 
against his ow^n country. Though he was made a briga- 
dier-general, and received a large reward in money, he was 
despised and shunned even in England. 

Greene's Campalg^n in the South. — At the close of the 
year (1780), General Greene was sent South to take charge 
of what was left of the American army in that section. 
He reorganized the scattered forces and, early in the year 
(1781), routed a force of British imder General Tarleton, 
gaining a decisive victory. Later in the season, Cornwallis 



SIEGE OF YORKTOWN. 



123 



defeated Greene at Guilford Court House; but Greene con- 
tinued to carry on the war with great skill, and the British 
met so many losses that Cornwallis withdrew to Virginia, 
and in a few months Georgia and the Carolinas were rid 
of the enemy, who then -m-^^ • » 

Illumination, 



held but three cities — 
Wilmington, Charles- 
ton, and Savannah. 

Sieg-e of Yorktown. 
— Reaching Virginia, 
Cornwallis ravaged the 
country along the 
James River until early 
in August, when he in- 
trenched himself at 
Yorktown. LaFaj'ctte, 
who was in command 
of the American forces 
in the state, was not 
able to meet Cornwal- 
lis in the open field, but 
watched all his move- 
ments with sleepless 
eyes. He saw that, if a 
French fleet could be 
anchored in the mouth 
of York River, cutting 
off retreat by water, a 
great victory might be gained, and sent messages to Wash- 
ington telling him of the situation. 

Count Rochambeau {ro sham bo) with a French army of 
6,000 men had landed at Newport, Rhode Island (July, 
1780), and joined the American army, on the Hudson, a 



COLONEL TiLGHMAN, Aid 
de Camp to his Excellency 
General Washington, having 
brought official acounts of the 
SURRENDER of Lord Corn- 
wallis, and the Garrifons of 
¥osk and Gloucefter,thofe Citi- 
zens who chafe to ILLUMI- 
NATE on the Glorious Oc- 
casion, will do it this evening 
^t Six, and esrtanguifh their 
lights at Nine o'dodc. 

Decorum and harmony are 
eameftly recommended to eve- 
ry CStizen, and a general dif- 
countenance to the leait ap- 
pearance of riot. 

08eitrsJ^t x/Sx. 

REDtJCED PAC-8IMILE OF THE fEOCLAMATION EESPECT- 
ING ILLUMINATION ON THE SURRENDER OF CORN- 
WALLIS. 



124 SURRENDER OF CORNWALLIS. 

short distance above New York. With this timely aid, 
Washin^on was able to keep Clinton in a state of con- 
stant alarm. When Comwallis' position and the approach 
of the French fleet became known to W^ashington, he left 
a small force to deceive the British, and with Rochambeau 
marched rapidly southward to join La Fayette before 
Yorktown. 

The allied armies formed a half-circle in front of York- 
town, while the French fleet, with powerful cannon, lay in 
the rear. The siege began late in September, and was con- 
tinued until the 18th of October, when the terms of sur- 
render were signed. On the following day nearly eight 
thousand British troops gave up their arms and became 
prisoners of war. 

YORKTOWN. 

From Yorktown's ruins, ranked and still. 
Two lines stretch far o'er vale and hill : 
Who curbs his steed at head of one ? 
Hark! the low murmur: Washington! 
Who bends his keen, approving glance 
Where down the gorgeous line of France 
Shine knightly star and plume of snow ? 
Thou, too, art victor, Rochambeau*! 

Now all is hushed : the gleaming lines 
Stand moveless as the neighboring pines : 
While through them, sullen, grim, and slow, 
The conquered hosts of England go : 
O'Hara's brow belies his dress. 
Gay Tarleton's troop ride bannerless : 
Shout, from thy fired and wasted homes. 
Thy scourge, Virginia, captive coiaes! 

Nor thou alone: with one glad voice 

Let all thy sister states rejoice ; 

Let Freedom, in whatever clime 

She waits with sleepless eye her time. 

Shouting from cave and mountain wood. 

Make glad her desert solitude. 

While they who hunt her quail with fear : 

The New World's chain lies broken lure. — Wliirtier. 



TREATY OF PEACE. 125 

End of the War.— Great joy followed this victory. Con- 
gress set apart a day for thanksgiving, and Washington 
liberated persons under arrest, that all might share in the 
general triumph. The war had lasted nearly seven years, 
and all felt that the end was reached, and that they had a 
right to be happy. 

Treaty of Peace.— Two years later (September 3, 1783), 
English and American commissioners met at Paris, and a 
treaty was made between England and her old colonies, 
by w^hich she acknowledged their independence. 

Washington Returns to Mt. Vernon.— When the war 
closed, Washington returned to his home on the banks of 
the Potomac, where he hoped to spend the rest of his days 
as a humble citizen of the country he had saved. He 
would take no pay for his services. To see his country free 
and independent was his great reward. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. Brandywine and Germantowii. 

2. The army at Valley Forge. 

3. Distinguished helpers. 

4. La Fayette. 

5. Aid from France. 

6. Retreat of the British from Philadelphia. 

7. Molly Pitcher. 

8. Operations in the South. 

9. Capture of Stony Point. 

10. A naval victory. 

11. Events in the South — Marion. 

12. The treason of Arnold. 

13. Capture of Andre'. 

14. Greene's campaign in the South. 

15. Siege of Yorktown. 

16. End of the war. 

17. The treaty of peace. 

18. Washington's return to Mt. Vernon. 



126 



TEST EXERCISES. 



TOPICS FOR REVIEW. 



Historic Names. — Tell what a-ou can of the persons whose names are 
given below : 



Patrick Henrv, 101. 
James Otis, 101. 
Samuel Adams, 102-3, 
John Adams, 103. 
Washington, 108-125. 
General Gage, 105. 
Paul Revere, 105. 
Ethan Allen, 107. 
General Ward, 107. 
General Stark, 107. 
General Green, 107. 
General Putnam, 107. 



Colonel Prescott, 107. 
Joseph Warren, 108. 
King George III., 112. 
Comwallis, 112,'21-'2-'3 
Robert Morris, 113. 
General Burgoyne, 115. 
General Gates, 115, 121. 
Gen. Howe,109-117,119. 
La Favette, 118. 
Count'Pulaski, 118. 
Baron De Kalb. 118. 
Baron Steuben, 119. 



Kosciusko, 118. 
Benjamin Franklin, 118. 
Sir H. Clinton, 119-124. 
General Lee, 119. 
Anthonv Wavne, 120. 
Paul Jo'nes, 120. 
Marion, 121. 
Benedict Arnold, 122. 
Major Andre, 122. 
General Greene, 122. 
Kochambeau, 123. 



Historic Places. — Locate the jjlaces named, and tell what you can of 
the events with which thev were connected: 



Boston, 101-109. 
New York, 112. 
Philadelphia, 117. 
Charlcstown, 105. 
Lexington, 105. 
Concord, 105. 
Ticonderoga, 107. 
Trenton, 112. 



Princeton, 113. 
Bennington, 115. 
Beniis Heights, 115. 
Saratoga, 115. 
Brandy wine, 117. 
Germantown, 117. 
Valley Forge, 117. 



Monmouth, 119. 
Stony Point, 120. 
Savannah, 120. 
West Point, 122. 
Guilford, C. H., 123. 
Yorktown, 123. 
Mount Vernon, 125. 



General Topics. — Tell what you can of the following: 

Chapter XX. — Causes ot the Revolution. XXL — The beginning of 
the war. XXII. — The Declaration of Independence. XXIII. — From Bran- 
dywine to Yorktown. 



THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



127 



PART FOURTH. 
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



Chapter XXIV. 



mxch 



SLiQIAUS/^ 



No. 45^^y 







Six fDO£fmi^. 

THIS Bill entitles the 
_„_ Bearer to Tccebve 
SIX SPANISH MILLED 
DOLLARS, or the 
"Va-lue-tliRreof in COLD 
orSItVER-accordiiw to 
aRcsolution of COJVi 
GRESS pMiMai Phi- 
ladelphia Nov-Z- 7/S' 



ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION -THE CONSTITUTION. 

Condition of the Country.— The Revolutionary army was 
not disbanded until the autumn of 1783. Independence 
had been gained, but there were many troubles to contend 
with. The war 
left the colo- 
nists very poor 
—much of their 
property had 
been destroy- 
ed ; their for- 
eign trade had 
been ruined ; 
agricul ture 
and manufac- 
tures had been 
neglected ; no 

silver or gold coin Vv^as in circulation, and the paper money 
Avas of little or no value. 

Contmental Paper Money. — when the war began, in 1775, the issue of paper 
money by the several colonies, and by the Continental Congress, became neces- 
sar3'. The plates were engraved by Paul Revere, of Boston. The paper used foi 
the bills was so thick and coarse that the British called it "the pasteboard 
currency of the rebels." Cart-loads of counterfeits were sent out over the colo- 
nies and put in circulation by the British. At the end of eighteen months from 



SJX DOLI.AAS 



^ sWa(Ji@^^g XI g)^ g 



CONTINENTAL CURRENCY. 




128 °OWER OF CONGRESS. 

the first issue, $20,000,000 had been stmck off by Congress alone, and little 

depreciation had been noticed. 

After this, the value of the currency declined so rapidly that, in 1781, a paper 

dollar was worth less than one cent and a half. Congress resolved that the bills 
"ought to pass current in all paj-ments, trade, and 
dealings, and be deemed equal in value to the same 
sum in Spanish dollars;" but this made no differ- 
ence, as, before the war closed, the monej' was worth- 
less. It would not bu3' food or clothing, or pay the 
soldiers, and the whole country was greatlj'distressed. 
With good money, the war might have been closed 
much sooner — perhaps, in four years. 

Power of Congress.— Besides all this, 
Congress had incurred a large public 
debt in carrying on the war; it had 
no means with which it could pay its 
soldiers, many of whom were penniless and much dissatis- 
fied ; and, still worse, it had no power to levy a tax to pay 
any part of the debt it had contracted. It could only ask 
the states to do it, and they might neglect, or even refuse. 

Opposition to Taxation.— In several of the states there 
was great opposition to taxation. It was said, "Neither 
taxes nor debts should be paid at such a time;" and, in 
Massachusetts, the opposition became so strong that a re- 
bellion broke out, under the leadership of one Daniel Shaj^s. 
Two thousand men in arms defied the authority of the 
state, and force had to be used to restore order. 

Articles of Confederation.— In July, 1775, Benjamin 
Franklin presented to the Continental Congress a plan of 
government to exist until the war closed ; but no action 
was taken until a year later, when a committee was ap- 
pointed, and reported "Articles of Confederation," which 
were discussed for a time, and then laid aside until 1777. 
Meanwhile, several states had adopted constitutions for 
their own government, though Congress was regarded as 
the head in matters pertaining to war and finances. 



WEAKNESS OF THE GOVERNMENT. 



129 



Benjamin Franklin, the fifteenth 
of a farnilj' of seventeen children, 
was born in Boston, Januar3' 17, 
1706; died in Philadelphia, April 
17, 1790. He was apprenticed to 
his brother James, a printer, and 
by reading, and careful practice in 
writing, all by himself, gained much 
knowledge of public affairs, and 
was able to compose readily and 
well. Franklin left Boston at the 
age of seventeen to seek his fortune 
elsewhere. He finally settled in 
Philadelphia, \vhere he established 
himself as a printer, and started the 
Pennsylvania Gazette. 

For man}' years, he published 
under the name of Richard Saun- 
ders, an almanac which became 
very Avidelj' knov^'n as " Poor Rich- 
ard's Almanac." As it contained 
inany wise and useful maxims, 
Franklin was soon regarded as a 
wise and prudent public man. He 
was the chief founder of the Phila- 
delphia Library (1731), the first 
subscription librarj' on record ; the 
founder of the University of Penn- 
sylvania; a delegate to the Colo- 
nial Congress; a signer of the Dec- 
laration of Independence, v\,'hich he 
helped to frame; amemberof many 
learned societies ; a leading mem- 
ber of the convention which drafted 
the National Constitution ; an am- 
bassador to France; the inventor 
of the " Franklin stove, or fire- 
place," and of the lightning rod. 
His last public act was the signing 
of a memorial to Congress on the 
sxjbject of slaverj-, by the Abolition 
Society of Pennsylvania, of \vhich 
he was the founder and presi- 
dent. Beginning life empty-handed, 
Franklin became one of the world's 
wise men, useful to his country — 
to all mankind. It was said that, 
" He wrested the thunderbolt from 
the sky, and the sceptre from 
tyrants." 



On the 15th of November, 
1777, after a long debate, a 
plan of government known as 
"Articles of Confederation" 
was adopted, by which the 
thirteen states became the 
"United States of America." 
The Articles of Confederation 
were submitted to the several 
states for their approval, but 
the work went on slowh^ and 
the league was not completed 
until March, 1781, when 
the delegates from Maryland 
signed the articles. The Arti- 
cles of Confederation remained 
in force until the acceptance by 
the states of our present Con- 
stitution (1788). 

Weakness of the Govern- 
ment.— Under the "Articles 
of Confederation," Congress 
could make war and decide 
how many soldiers were re- 
quired, it could borrow money 
on the credit of the Union, 
could make known what sup- 
plies were needed by the army, 
and could make treaties with 
foreign powers ; but any state 
might fail or refuse to raise its 
quota of soldiers, to levy a 
tax to pay the public debt, to 



130 



FRAMING THE COXSTITUTION. 



Early Life of V/aSiiington. — 
George Washington was born near 
the banks of the Potomac, in West- 
moreland County, Virginia, Feb- 
ruary 22, 1732. He was the eld- 
est son of his father's second wife, 
Mary Ball, and as his father died 
when George was a small child, 
the education and guidance of the 
future leader devolved upon his 
mother. So wise was her training 
that Washington always remem- 
bered her affectionate care with 
deep gratitude. He received a 
common English education ; and 
was naturally thoughtful, truthful, 
and strictlj' honest. At fourteen 
he had a strong desire to become a 
sailor, but listened to the kind ad- 
vice of his mother, and remained 
at home. When seventeen years of 
age, he was known as one of the 
most careful and accurate land sur- 
veyors in Virginia, and a year 
later he was appointed public sur- 
veyor. In pursuit of his profession 
he learned much of the border 
country ; and also of the habits of 
the Indians in peace and in war. 
These lessons were of great value 
to him in after life. By the will of 
his half-brother, Lawrence, Wash- 
ington became heir to the fine 
Mount Vernon estate. 



provide supplies for forces in the field, to observe treaties, 
and Congress had no power to compel obedience. 

Washington wrote, "One state will comply with a req- 
uisition of Congress; another neglects to do it; a third 
executes it b\^ halves; * * * so that we are always 
working up-hill. We are one nation to-day and thirteen 

to-morrow." He, and other 
statesmen, saw that this 
would never do, and a conven- 
tion was called to meet at the 
State House in Philadelphia, 
to frame a constitution, and 
make a stronger government 
without injury to the people 
of the several states. 

Framing- the Constitution.— 
The convention consisted of 
fifty-five delegates, and every 
state, except Rhode Island, 
w^as represented. Washington 
acted as president. After a 
session of four months, the 
present Constitution of our 
country was adopted (Septem- 
ber 17, 1787) . The states were 
now to accept or reject it. Ten 
of them accepted it at once, so 
that it went into effect in 
1788. North Carolina, New^ 
York, and Rhode Island accepted it later, and the thir- 
teen states, which had been feebly held together by the Ar- 
ticles of Confederation, were at last firmly united. They 
had become a nation. 



THE FIRST PRESIDENT. 



131 



Powers of the Government.— The Constitution leaves 
each state free to make its own laws, and gives the gen- 
eral government power to manage those things which con- 
cern the \vhole country. It can levy taxes, coin money, 
regulate commerce, establish postoffices, make treaties with 
other governments, provide an army and navy, and de- 
clare war. 




FEDERAL HALL 



The First President.— George Washington received all 
the electoral votes for president of the new republic, and 
John Adams was chosen vice-president. New York was 
made the seat of government. 

Journey to New York.— As Washington journeyed to that 
city from his home at Mount Vernon, the people everA'- 
where, "old and young, women and children, thronged the 
highw^ays to welcome and bless him." Delegations came ort 




132 JOURNEY TO NEW YORK. 

from the principal cities to meet and escort him ; streets 
were decorated with silken flags, and his name was 
wreathed with garlands of flowers and evergreens. 

On each bank of the Schuylkill River, where he crossed, was a triumphal arch 
approached through an avenue bordered bj- evergreens. Up amid the laurel of 
the arches was a little girl, Angelice 
Peale, daughter of Rembrant Peale, 
the renowned artist of the 
last century .•• As Washington 
passed beneath the arch, 
she dropped a wreath of 
laurels upon his head. 
" Long live George Wash- 
ington ! " was the shout 
that went up from twen- 
ty thousand people as- 
sembled to greet him. — 
Chavtauquan. 

At Trenton, the ladies 
had erected a triumphal 
arch on a bridge over which 
W'ashington had retreated 
before the army of Comwal- 
lis on that wintry night. It 
was entwined with evergreens and ,^ "*^^ ^'Vx^ ■n 



laurel, and bore the inscription '' N.$ ^s.^~ 

"The defender of the mothers will *'- 

be the protector of the daughters" mvrthv Washington 

As Washington passed under the arch a number of young girls, dressed in white 

and crowned with garlands, strewed flowers before him, and sang this ode- 

■' Welcome, might j' chief, once more, 
Welcome to this gratefixl shore: 
Now no mercenary- foe 
Aims again the fatal blow — 
Aims at thee the fatal blow. 

"Virgins fair, and matrons grave. 
Those thj' conquering arm did save, 
Build to thee triumphal bowers : 
Strew, ye fair, his waj- with flowers ! — 
Strew your hero's waj' with flowers!" 

Inaug'uration. — Washington took the oath of office on 
the balcony of Federal Hall, New York. The oath was 
administered by the Chancellor of the state of New York, 



Washington's inauguration. 133 

in full view of a vast multitude in the streets, who sent 
up the shout, "Long live George Washington, President of 
the United States." At this moment a flag was unfurled 
on the cupola of the hall, the roar of artillery was heard, 
and the church bells rang out a joyful peal. Thus was our 
first president inaugurated (April 30, 1789). 

Martha Washington, "wife of President Washington, left Mount Vernon to join 
her husband in New York on the 19th of May, 1789. She traveled in her chaise, 
and was tidily clothed in goods of American manufacture. With her were two 
grandchildren, George Washington Parke, and Eleanor Parke Custis, children of 
her son by a former husband. At Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New^ York, she 
■was received with honors worthy of a queen. 

Topics.— Tell about— 

1. Condition of the country. 

2. Continental money. 

3. Power of Congress. 

4. Opposition to taxation. 

5. Weakness of the Confederation. 

6. Washington's opinion. 

7. Framing the Constitution. 

8. Po^vers of the government. 

I. THE FIRST PRESIDENT. 

1. Journej'^ to New York. 

2. Inauguration. 

3. Alartha W^ashington. 




(134) 



THE NEW REPUBLIC AND ITS PEOPLE. 135 



Chapter XXV. 

THE NEW REPUBLIC AND ITS PEOPLE. 

Population and Territory.— When Washington became 
President, the thirteen states numbered less than four mill- 
ion inhabitants. The population was thinh^ scattered be- 
tween the Atlantic Ocean and the Alleghany Mountains, 
beyond which only a few hardy settlers had built their 
cabins. By the treaty of peace, the United States had se- 
cured all the territory east of the Mississippi, save a tract 
along the Gulf of Mexico, but the vast region to the west 
of that river was held by Spain. 

The Cities. — The principal cities were on the sea-coast, 
or near the mouths of navigable rivers. The largest 
had hardly more than forty thousand inhabitants. The 
streets were poorly paved, dirtj^ and mostly without light 
at night, a,nd everywhere water was carried from the town 
pump or well. In traveling away from the coast, one 
would have found the towns smaller and smaller, the 
dwellings ruder and ruder, and farther and farther apart, 
until the unbroken forest was reached. 

How People Traveled.— Steamboats and railroads were 
unknown, and the common roads were few, and usually 
very poor. The great rivers were not bridged, and rude 
scows were used in crossing them. Most of the people lived 
on farms or plantations, and seldom traveled far away from 
home. Horseback riding was common, and journe3^s of 
hundreds of miles were sometimes made in the saddle. 
W^orkingmen traveled on foot, carr3^ing a change of cloth- 
ing tied in a bundle, which was hung on the end of a stick 
thrown over the shoulder. (See page 164.) 



136 



HOW PEOPLE TRAVELED. 



Merchants, and other persons of means went from town 
to town in sailing packets, or in their own coaches. Stages, 
drawn by four horses, ran between Boston and New York, 




New York and Philadelphia, and other large towns. It 
took about a week to make the run by stage from New 
York to Boston, a trip now made in a few hours. 

Farm Life. — Nearly all of the farmer's tools were very 
rude. He stirred the ground with a wooden plough hav- 



FARM LIFE. 



137 



ing an iron share, reaped his grain with a curved blade, 
called a sickle, threshed it with a flail, and often carried 
his wheat or corn to mill in a sack thrown across the 
back of a horse. It was hard to sell his surplus grain, and 
little money was received, and little spent for his family. 
There were 
few books or 
papers, and 
hunting and 
fishing were 
the principal 
amusements. 
Labor and 
rest consti- 
tuted about 
all of Hfe. 
In the 
Middle 
and South 
em States, 
less labor was 
required to pro 
duce crops, and 
planters took life 
easier. The tools ~ 
used on the planta- 
tion were home-made 
and clums3^ The 
plantations grew about all that was used for food, and 
the slaves made most things needed on the estate. The 
large tobacco and rice growers found a ready market for 
their products. They imported many things, and lived in 
fine stvle. 




FARM LIFE — PLOWING — REAPING. 



138 SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL- MASTERS. 

Mails and Newspapers. — Most people wrote very few 
letters, and the mails were so irregular and slow that 
it took a long time to hear from distant friends. There 
were weekly newspapers, but, as the telegraph and "fast 
mail" were unknown, much of the news printed was 
rather old. 

Schools and School-Masters.— There were schools in all 
the cities, -villages, and hamlets of New England, but there 
were no blackboards, wall-maps, globes, or patent desks 
such as we have to-day. The bo^^s learned to read, to 
write, and to cipher; and the girls had reading, writing, 
needle-work, and fancy-work. The pens were made of 
quills, and every master carried a penknife, "Setting cop- 
ies" and "mending pens" were a part of his daily work; 
and no one thought of teaching without a rod or a ruler 
with which to punish unruly bo^^s. Schools were not so 
common in the South, where there were manj-- slaves. 

Lights and Fuel. — Houses, churches, and halls were lighted 
with tallow candles, or with oil; and grease, burned in a 
shallow vessel with a wick, sitpplied light in many homes. 
The use of stone coal was scarcely known, and the only 
fiiel was wood, burned in a fire-place instead of a stove. 

How the People Dressed. — Wool and flax were spun and 
woven at home, and nearly everj^body wore homespun 
clothes. Workingmen usually wore breeches of leather or 
leather aprons. Every fall, the feet of the children were 
measured by the shoemaker, who went from house to house 
to make shoes for the family. Clothes w^ere cut and made 
by a seamstress, who sometimes boarded in the family 
while at work. Many of the farmer's tools were home- 
made, and very different from those we see to-day. 

The wealthier classes wore very elegant costumes. 
Judges had their robes of silk ; clergymen, when in the pul- 



THE WEALTHIER CLASSES. 



139 



pit, wore powdered wigs with gowns ; and ladies appeared 
in rich silks and brocades imported from Europe, with hair 
iDuilt high above the head, and dressed with powder and 
pomatum. Gentlemen clothed themselves in suits of many 
colors. A wig, a white stock, white satin embroidered 
vest, black satin breeches, white silk stockings, broadcloth 











THE MUSIC LESSON. 



or velvet coat, low shoes with large silver buckles, and a 
highly ornamented snuff-box, were necessary articles in 
those days, if a gentleman would go abroad in fashionable 
attire. 

Slavery. — Slaves were still held in all the states except 
Massachusetts ; but they Avere most numerous in the South, 
w^here tobacco and rice were raised with ease and profit. 



140 



THE NUMBER OF SLAVES. 



Nearly everj^-bodv thought that slaYer3' would die out in a 
short time, and the country become in fact, as in name, 
"The land of the free and the home of the brave." 




NTDGRO ^^LLAGE IN GEORGIA. 



The number of slaves in the states at the time of the 
first census (1790) was as follows : 



NORTH. 



158 

17 

952 

2,759 

None 



Ne-w Hampshire 

Vermont, 

Rhode Island 

Connecticut, 

Massachusetts, • 

New York, 21, .324 

New Jersey, 11,423 

Pennsylvania 3,737 

Total 40,370 

•Abolished in 1780. 



.SOUTH. 




Delaware 


8,887 


Marj'land 


. 103,036 


Virginia, 


. 293,427 


North Carolina, .... 


. 100,573 


South Carolina, . . . 


107,094 


Georgia, ... . . 


29,264 


Kentucky 


11,830 


Tennessee, ...... 


3.417 


Total, 


. 657,527 



Washington's administration. 



141 



Topics. — Tell about — 

I. THE NEW REPUBLIC AND ITS PEOPLE. 

1. Population and territor3^ 

2. The cities. 

3. How people traveled. 

4. Mails and newspapers. 

5. Farm life. 

6. Schools and school-masters. 

7. Lights and fuel. 

8. How the people dressed. 

9. Dress of the wealthy, judges, etc. 
10. Slaverv. 



Chapter XXVI. 



WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION- 1789-1797. 



Provisions of the Constitution.— The Constitution of the 
United States provides for a congress to make the laws, a 
president to see that thej^ are obe^^ed, 
and a supreme court to explain them 
\vhen there is doubt of their meaning. 

The First Cabinet.— Congress author- 
ized Washington to choose three men 
to advise and assist him. They formed 
what is now called the "President's 
Cabinet." Thomas Jefferson waschos- 
en Secretary of State, to attend to all 
business with other nations ; Alexan- 
der Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury', to look after the 
financial affairs of the government; General Henry Knox, 
Secretary of War, to attend to matters connected with the 
aml3^ Edwin Randolph was appointed Attorney General, 
and John Jaj^ Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. 




142 



WORK OF THE ADMINISTRATION. 



Questions to be Settled.— 

All the Avisdom of Congress, of 
the President, and his Cabi- 
net Avas needed in settling the 
questions that came up. There 
was a large war debt, and no 
money in the treasury; the 
Indians were at war with the 
settlers on the Western front- 
ier ; there was a bitter feeling 
towards England, because she 
did not full_v observe the late 
treaty ; Spain refused to open 
the Mississippi to American 
vessels ; and there was trouble 
with France, and with the pi- 
rates of the Barbary States, 
who prej^ed upon the com- 
merce of the countrv'. 

Work of the Administration. 
— Early provision was made 
for the paj-ment of ever\^ dol- 
lar of the public debt ; the In- 
dians were subdued by troops 
sent against them; a treaty 
was made with England, and 
for a time there was a better 
feeling between the two na- 
tions ; Spain consented to the 
free navigation of the Mis- 
sissippi by American vessels; 

a stead}' hand was carried with the French, and with the 

pirates of the Barbary States. 



Alexander Hamilton ^vas bom in 
Nevis, one of the West Indies, Jan- 
uary 11, 1757. His father Avas 
from Scotland; his mother, a 
French Huguenot. He was sent tn 
Elizabeth, N. J., to attend school, 
and afterwards entered Kings Col- 
lege.. When but seventeen j-ears of 
age he took an active interest in 
the political affairs of the colonies, 
and his speeches, pamphlets, and 
newspaper articles Avon great ap- 
plause. He entered the armj-, and 
became aid-de-camp to Washing- 
ton, his secretary and confidant. 
After the surrender of Cornwallis, 
he studied law, waselectcd to Con- 
gress, and became a leader in his 
profession. He Avas a member of 
the convention that framed the 
Constitution, and was the princi- 
pal author of a series of remarka- 
ble papers in favor of it. As the 
first Secretary' of the Treasurj-, he 
■was the founder of the financial 
system of the Republic, including 
the Vnited States Bank. After as- 
sisting to put the machinerj' of the 
government in motion, he resigned 
and resumed the practice of law. 

In ISO-t, though opposed to duel- 
ing, Hamilton felt compelled to 
accept a challenge from Aaron 
Burr, and was killed. 

" The impression upon the pviblic 
mind by this fatal duel did not 
easils' subside. The absurdity of 
the sacrifice of a life likellainilton's 
to the honor of a profligate like 
Burr was too gross, and a strong 
impulse was thus given to that 
growing sentiment of civilized com- 
mon sense which has nearly extir- 
pated the practice of dueling 
throughout the United States." — 
Bil-Jretb. 



POLITICAL PARTIES. 143 

Seat of Government. — Besides settling these important 
matters, the seat of government w^as removed to Philadel- 
phia (1790), to remain until a site could be chosen on the 
Potomac ; a United States bank was established ; and also 
a mint for coining money. 

New States. — Three states were admitted to the Union,— 
Vermont (1791), Kentucky (1792), and Tennessee (1796), 
making a nation of sixteen states, with sixteen stars on its 
flag. 

Political Parties. — In those days there were two par- 
ties — the Federalist and Republican. The Federalists had 
favored the adoption of the Constitution, and wished to 
see a strong general government. They believed in forms 
and ceremonies, and feared the people would not have 
respect for public officers whose style of living was plain 
and simple. On the other hand, the Republicans, or Demo- 
crats, as they were afterwards called, feared that the na- 
tional government would become so strong as to destroy 
the rights of the states. They hated the aristocracy of Eng- 
land, and thought that everybody ought to live in a plain, 
inexpensive way. Jefferson and Samuel Adams were lead- 
ers of the Republicans, w^hile Washington, Hamilton, and 
John Adams were Federalists. The Republicans thought 
Washington's way of living too showy and expensive, and 
made bitter complaints. 

Washington's Coach and Levees. — Washington rode to Congress in a cream- 
colored coach ornamented with flowers and figures of cupids supporting festoons. 
On ordinary occasions the coach was drawn by four horses; on great occasions 
by six, and on Sundaj's by two. The driver and postillions wore liveries of 
white and scarlet. Levees, or receptions, v^-ere held regularly, at which Wash- 
ington ajiiDeared in black velvet, with white or pearl colored waistcoat, yellow 
gloves, silver knee-buckles and shoe-buckles. His hair was powdered, and gathered 
in a silk bag behind. He carried a cocked hat in his hand, and wore a long 
sword wth a scabbard of polished white leather. He never shook hands with 
his guests, but bowed to each when introduced. Mrs. Washington also held 
evening levees, at which everyone was expected to appear in full dress. 



WASHINGTON'S DEATH. 145 

Party Spirit was so bitter in the early das's of the Republic that even Wash, 
ington was not spared bj' the political papers. He was accused of "plotting 
against the public liberties," of " multipl^'ing evils upon the United States," of 
"corrupting the principles of republicanism," and of "wearing the mask of pa- 
triotism to conceal the foulest designs." Other public men were made the sub- 
jects of even more severe abuse. Both parties were guilty of the offense. 

The Cotton Gin.— During Washington's term of office 
(1793), a machine was invented which had a wonderful 
influence on the labor of the South and on the history of. 
the whole country. The cotton plant, so useful for its fibre, 
was easily grown almost every where in the South, but it 
required so much labor to separate the seed from the fibre, 
that the crop could not be raised with profit. 

Eli Whitnej^, a native of Massachusetts, visiting in Geor- 
gia, invented a cotton gin, the teeth of which pulled the 
fibre through wires, leaving the seeds behind. This "gin" 
performed the work of hundreds of hands, and cotton raising 
became so profitable that vast tracts of land were devoted 
to it, and, in a few years, millions of pounds were annually 
shipped to England. This brought wealth to the country, 
increased the value of slaves, who worked the plantations, 
and caused the people of the cotton-raising states to cling 
to slave labor more strongly than before. 

Washing-ton's Death.— Having held the office of President 
for eight years, or two terms, Washington declined to be 
a candidate for a third term, and retired to Mount Vernon 
to spend the rest of his days on his estate. Death came 
to him on the 14th of December, 1799. He was ill but a 
short time, and passed away without a stiniggle, sa3'ing 
to those about him, a short time before he expired, "I feel 
that I am going. I thank you for your attention, but I 
pray you will take no more trouble about me; let me go 
off quietly. I cannot last long." Washington was greath' 
mourned b\^ his countr3^men, and by good people in all 
lands. 

10 



146 



ADAMS ADMINISTRATION. 



Topics.- 


-Tell about— 




1. 


Provisions of the Constitution. 




2. 


The first cabinet. 




3. 


Questions to be settled. 




4. 


Alexander Hamilton. 




5. 


Work of the administration. 




6. 


Seat of government. 




7. 


New states. 




8. 


Political parties. 




9. 


Washington's coach, levees, dress 




10. 


The cotton gin. 




11. 


Washington's death. 



Chapter XXVII. 



JOHN ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION- 1797-1801. 



John Adams, of Massachusetts, was the next President. 
He had but a small majoritj^ over Jefferson, and the latter 
was made Vice-President. This was 
under the rule in those da\^s, that the 
candidate who had the second highest 
number of votes for President should 
be made Vice-President. Adams was 
inaugurated at Philadelphia, but be- 
fore his administration closed the seat 
of government was removed (1800) to 
a site at Washington, selected by Gen- 
eral Washington himself. 
Trouble with France. — Our minister to France was sent 
home, laws unfriendly to American commerce were passed, 
and the officers of French war vessels were encouraged to 
prey upon our commerce. Trade with France was sus- 
pended, an army was ordered to be raised, the navy to be 
strengthened, and Washington was called to the command. 




ALIEN AND SEDITION LAWS. 147 

Fortunate^, Napoleon came into power in France, and 
with him the government had no difficultj^ in making a 
settlement. 

Alien and Sedition Laws. — The friends of France living 
in the United States said so many hard things against the 
government that Congress passed "Alien and Sedition 
Laws." The alien law gave the President authority to 
send foreigners out of the country w^henever he believed 
their presence dangerous to the peace; and the sedition 
law made it a crime for any one "to write, print, utter, or 
publish any false or scandalous" statement against the 
government or President. Several prominent me'n w^ere 
tried under these acts, which the people regarded as very 
harsh, and the administration of Adams became so unpop- 
ular that he was not re-elected. There were several 
candidates, but as no one was elected by the popular 
vote, the House of Representatives, which had the right to 
decide in such cases, chose Jefferson. 

The Twelfth Amendment. — The' difficulties growing out of this election were 
so great that it was thought best to change the manner of choosing the Presi- 
dent and Vice-President, and the twelfth amendment to the Constitution was 
adopted (1804). The electors were thereafter required to vote separatelj^ for 
each officer, and there could be no tie vote such as the one between Jefferson 
and Burr, where both candidates w^ere of the same party. This is the mode at 
the present time. 

Topics.— Tell about— 

1. John Adams' election. 

2. Trouble with France. 

3. Alien and sedition laws. 

4. The twelfth amendment. 



148 .JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. 




Chapter XXVIII. 

JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION - 1 80 1 - 1 809. 

Jefferson's Habits. — As we have learned, Jefferson "was a 
Republican, or as afterwards called, a Democrat. Though 
of aristocratic birth, he favored sim- 
plicity in dress, in manner of living, and 
in government. When inaugurated, he 
wore plain clothes, rode to the Capitol 
on horseback, alone, hitched his horse 
to a post, went in, and read his ad- 
dress. He abolished levees and birth- 
day parties, introduced by Washing- 

I THOMAS JEFFERSON. U ^^^ , ^^^ ^^^^^^ ^^^^^ J^-g ^^^^^^ ^^^ 

^Lx£xl£lx::ex:ex=kxxl^^^eM -welcomcd cvcrybody on New Year's 
and the Fourth of July. He made the expenses of govern- 
ment as small as possible, and paid thirty-three millions 
of the public debt. 

War with Tripoli.— The ports of the Barbary States, 
along the Mediterranean, were infested by pirates who plun- 
dered the vessels of Christian nations, and held their crews 
as slaves to be ransomed. The United States had paid 
tribute to the rulers of the Barbary States, as the easiest 
way to protect American commerce ; but the ruler of Tripoli 
became dissatisfied with the payments made to him, and 
declared war (1801). Jefferson resolved to pay no more 
tribute to pirates, and sent a squadron to teach them a 
lesson. In 1805, Tripoli was glad to make peace. Ten 
years later, Algiers was humbled, after which there was no 
more trouble with pirate powers. 



LOUISIANA PURCHASE,. 



149 



Thomas Jefferson ^vas born at 
Shadwell, Virginia, April 2, IT-tS. 
He was educated at the College of 
William and Alary: studied law, 
and was admitted to the bar when 
twenty-four years of age. He be- 
came a member of the "Virginia 
House of Burgesses in 1769, and 
continued in public life until his re- 
tirement from the presidency of the 
United States. When thirty-two 
years of age he became a member 
of the Continental Congress, in 
w^hich body he wrote many state 
papers. As a member of a com- 
mittee to draft the Declaration of 
Independence he drew \\p that im- 
portant paper. During the war 
for independence Jefferson was very 
active in his own state, serving as 
governor from 1779 to 1781. He 
was the author of our present sys- 
tem of reckoning by dollars and 
cents, instead of the old waj', by 
pounds, shillings, and pence. In 
1785 he was sent as minister to 
the French Court, where he re- 
mained until called to a seat in 
Washington's Cabinet. 

Jefferson's house was the resort 
of the learned men of both hemi- 
spheres ; he was not a fluent 
speaker, but a ready writer and 
very entertaining in conversation. 
He regarded slavery as a moral 
and political evil, and did much to 
alleviatcits hardships. He adopted 
the motto, "Rebellion to tyrants 
is obedience to God." He died 
July 4, 1826, and was buried near 
his house at Alonticello. His 
monument bears an inscription 
■written by his own hand, and 
found among his papers., "Here 
lies buried Thomas Jefferson, au- 
thor of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, of the statute of Virginia 
for Religions Freedom, and the 
father of the University of Vir- 
ginia." 



The United States frigate, Philadel- 
phia, struck on a rock in the Tripolitan 
harbor, and, before she could be gotten 
off, was captured, and her officers and 
crew made prisoners. Lieutenant Deca- 
tur, with seventy-six men, sailed into the 
harbor at night, right under the guns of 
the enemy's castle, boarded the ship in 
sijite of her swarthy defenders, set her on 
fire, and escaped w-ithout losing a man. 

Louisiana Purchase.— By a 
secret treaty, Spain had given 
up her vast territory west of 
the Mississippi to Napoleon, 
who, before he had taken pos- 
session, sold it to Jefferson, for 
fifteen million dollars (1803). 
This -vvas called the Louisiana 
purchase. It gave the United 
States full control of the Alis- 
sissippi and of all its tributa- 
ries, and nearly doubled its 
territory. 

Had the Spanish or the French con- 
tinued to hold that territory, another 
nation might have sprung up, ^vith cities 
and towns on the western bank of the 
great river, to share the navigation of its 
waters with the people of the United 
States. This would have led to endless 
quarrels, and standing armies, maintained 
at great expense, would have been- neces- 
sary to preserve peace. Napoleon said, 
"This accession of territory strengthens 
forever the power of the United States; 
and I have just given to England a raara- 
time rival that will, sooner or later, hum- 
ble her pride." 

Expedition of Lewis and 
Clarke. — Only the border of the 



EXPEDITION OF LEWIS AND CLARKE. 151 

new purchase had been explored, and the President, acting 
under the authority of Congress, appointed Meriwether 
Lewis and WilHam Clarke to conduct an exploring expedi- 
tion. They were to learn "what the formation of the 
country was, what great rivers watered it, w^hat its min- 
erals, plants, and animals were, what Indian tribes inhab- 
ited it, and w^hether they were disposed to be friendly." 

There were forty-five men in all, and they took provi- 
sions, tents for camping, fire-arms, and presents for the 
Indians. Starting in small boats from St. Louis, then a 
mere trading-post, in the spring of 1804, they ascended the 
Missouri to a point near the mouth of the Platte River, 
w^here a council v^as held with several Indian tribes, at a 
place since called Council Bluffs. Proceeding on their jour- 
ney, they traced the great river to its source, crossed what 
w^ere then called the Stony Mountains, and finding a small 
stream flowing to the v^est, they followed it until they 
reached the Pacific Ocean, at the mouth of the Columbia. 
Lewis and Clarke were the first to carry the American flag 
across the continent. 

The expedition returned, after an absence of two years 
and four months, bringing accounts of immense plains, of 
mountain ranges with snowy peaks, of mighty rivers with 
grand rapids and water-falls, of wide-spread forests, of vast 
herds of buffalo, and of Indian tribes before unknown. 
Jefferson wrote, "Never did a similar event excite more 
joy throughout the United States. The humblest of its 
citizens had taken a lively interest in the issue of the jour- 
ney, and looked forward with impatience for the informa- 
tion it would furnish." 

The Slave Trade. — Since the landing of a cargo of slaves 
by the Dutch at Jamestown, nearly two hundred years 
before, slaver\^ had gone on increasing, and the trade in 



152 COMMERCIAL TROUBLES. 

slaves had been kept up. When the Constitution was 
framed, it was agreed that there should be no interference 
with the foreign slave trade until January 1, 1808. Jeffer- 
son called the attention of Congress to the subject (1807), 
urging that, "Moralit3', reputation, and the best interests 
of the country, demand that the traffic in slaves be forbid- 
den." After an exciting debate, a law was passed, forbid- 
ding the importation of slaves after the year 1807. 

In spite of this act, ship-loads of slaves from Africa were brought to the 
United States; and the trade did not cease until the leading nations made it 
piracy, and combined to break it up. It was not until slaver\' was destroyed 
by the Civil AVar that the slave trade between the states of the Union ceased. 

Commercial Troubles. — England and France were at 
war, and each nation tried to cut off all trade with the 
other, and claimed the right to take an3^ ship engaged in 
such trade, so that an American ship was in constant 
danger of being captured by one or the other of the- two 
powers. American vessels when approaching French ports 
were seized by the British as prizes, and when approaching 
the harbors of Great Britain were seized by the cruisers of 
France. In this way the commerce of the United States 
was greatly injured. The English claimed also the right 
to search American vessels for British subjects, and actu- 
ally fired on an American vessel which refused to allow 
the search to be made. 

The Embargo Act. — Congress then passed (1807) what 
is known as the Embargo Act, keeping all American ships 
in the ports of the United States. In this way the gov- 
ernment hoped to force France and England to allow 
trade to go on in peace; but the law ruined thousands of 
our merchants, without greatly injuring our enemies, and 
was repealed after being in force but fourteen months. 

The First Steamboat.— While these things were going on, 
Robert Fulton was building his first steamboat. The idea 



A NEW STATE. 153 

of steam navigation was not entirely new, for John Fitch 
had built a boat to ply on the Delaware (1786), and, 
earlier still, James Rumsey had tried one on the Potomac. 
Fulton's boat seems to have been the first one suited to 
the carrying of both passengers and freight. It was 
launched in 1807, and made the trip from New York to 
Albany at the rate of five miles an hour, against wind and 
tide. 

While Fulton was biiilding his boat no one gave him an encouraging word, 
and nearly everybody laughed and spoke of it as "Fulton's Folly." But his 
invention has proved one of the greatest blessings to mankind. 

New State. — During Jefferson's administration, Ohio was 
admitted to the Union, making the seventeenth state. 

Election of Madison.— The FederaHsts blamed Jefferson 
for the injury to trade caused by the Embargo Act, and 
they hoped to elect the next President; but the Republi- 
cans, who clamored for war with Great Britain, succeeded 
in choosing James Madison, of Virginia. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. Jefferson's habits. 

2. War with Tripoli. 

3. The Louisiana purchase. 

4. Expedition of Lewis and Clarke. 

5. The slave trade. 

6. Commercial troubles. 

7. The embargo act. 

8. The first steamboat. 

9. New state. 

10. The election of Madison. 



154 



MADISON S ADMINISTRATION. 



Chapter XXIX. 



MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION- 1809-1817. 



Indian Troubles. — The Indians of the Northwest were 
receiving very low prices for their furs, \vhite settlers were 
occup3-ing the lands where they had hunted so long, and 
they were becoming very uneasy. Their powerful chief, 
Tecumseh, urged them to take up arms against the whites. 
While he ^vas going from tribe to tribe, tr3'ing to form a 
union in order to restore his race to their ancient power, 
William Henry Harrison, then Governor of Indiana Territory 
— Northwest Territory with Ohio cut off — marched against 
a large Indian town near the mouth of the Tippecanoe 
e:xsyj River, and defeated the savages with 
great loss (1811). This victory gave 
Harrison the name, "Hero of Tippe- 
canoe." 

War with Eng-land.— When Madison 
became President, he found the English 
still claiming the right to search Ameri- 
can vessels for British subjects, and it 
was said that several thousand men, 
on whom England had no just claim, 
had been taken from our ships, and made to fight under 
the British flag. 

The outrages became so great, that Congress finalh' de- 
clared war (1812). There was much opposition to this 
measure, and a great outcry went up against it from New 
England, whose trade and shipping would be the pre}- of 
England's thousand ships. 




VICTORIES ON THE OCEAN. 



155 



Hull's Surrender.— The war began with an attempt to 
invade Canada, and two armies were sent against it. One 
of them, under General Hull, surrendered at Detroit, with- 
out a battle. By this victorv, the British gained the mili- 
tary stores at 
Detroit, and 
the whole of 
the Territory 
of Michigan. 
The other 
army also 
was imsuc- 
cessful. 




The Americans 
were lying in their 
trenches eager to 
fire at the advanc- 
ingfoe, when Htill, 
apparently fright- 
ened, ordered the 
white flag to be 

run up, and then made haste to surrender his entire army. Hull was afterwards 
tried for cowardice, and sentenced to be shot, but the President, feeling pity for 
one who had faithfully served his country in the Revolution, pardoned him. 

Victories on the Ocean.— Although the land forces were 
unsuccessful, the navy won several brilliant victories. The 
frigate Constitution, under Captain Isaac Hull, nephew of 
General Hull, met the powerful English frigate Guerriere, 
off the Banks of Newfoundland, and, after a sharp engage- 
ment, compelled her to surrender (August 19, 1812). Under 
different commanders, the Constitution gained several other 
victories, and the sailors named her "Old Ironsides." 

"Old Ironsides" became the pride of the navy, but the time came when, on 
account of age, it was thought that she was no longer fit for service, and the 
Secretary of the Navy decided to destroy her. The grand old ship was dear to 
the people, pulilic sentiment condemned the decision, and "Old Ironsides" was 



156 OLD IROXSIDES. 

saved and turned into a school-ship, where boys were fitted for ser\-ice in the 
navj'. The following poem by O. \V. Holmes, published in the papers of the 
country, touched the hearts of nil, and, no doubt, helped to stay the destroying 
hand : 

OLD IRONSIDES. 
Aj', tear her tattered ensign down! 

Long has it w^aved on high. 
And many an eye has danced to see 

That banner in the sky : 
Beneath it rung the battle-shout. 

And burst the cannon's roar; 
The meteor of the ocean-air 
Shall sweep the clouds no more. 

Her deck, once red with heroes' blood, 

Where knelt the vancxuished foe. 
When w-inds were hurrying o'er the flood, 

And waves were white below. 
No more shall feel the victor's tread. 

Or know the conquered knee; 
The harpies of the shore shall pluck 

The eagle of the sea. 

Oh, better that her shattered hulk 

Should sink beneath the wave ; 
Her thunders shook the mighty deep. 

And there should be her grave. 
Nail to the mast her holy flag. 

Set every threadbare sail, 
And give her to the god of storms — 

The lightning and the gale. 

Two months after the victor)^ of the Constitution, the 
American sloop-of-war Wasp, in command of Captain 
Jones, captured the British brig Frolic, off the coast of 
North Carolina ; and a week later, Stephen Decatur, of 
the frigate United States, compelled the frigate Macedo- 
nian to haul down her flag. 

Privateers. — Sixteen naval battles were fought on the 
ocean, in eleven of which our brave sailors were victorious. 
American privateers from New York, Boston, Charleston, 
and other ports, swept the sea in all directions, and not 
less than sixteen hundred British merchantmen were cap- 
tured or destro^'cd during the war. 



BATTLE OF THE THAMES. 157 

Several touching examples of courage are recorded. In the fight between "Old 
Ironsides" and the Java, an American sailor was wounded and lay on the deck 
in a dying condition until the Java surrendered, when, lifting himself up, he gave 
three cheers for his country's flag, then fell back to rise no more. "Don't give 
up the ship," were the dying words of Captain Lawrence, of the Chesapeake, 
when the shot of the British frigate Shannon had swept ever3' superior officer 
from the deck, killed or wounded, and there -was no officer left on board to. sur- 
render the ship, or to haul down her colors. 

Perry's Victory.— The English had a fleet on Lake Erie, 
and were masters on the Great Lakes. Oliver H. Perry, a 
young man who had never been in battle, v^as sent to take 
charge of the American fleet, a part of which was to be 
built from trees still growing in the forest. By hard work, 
nine ships, carrying fifty-four guns, were made ready for 
battle; but Perry had to wait for sailors to be sent in 
stage coaches from the Atlantic Coast before he could set 
sail. 

At last, an English fleet of six ships hove in sight, and 
it was not long before the battle began. Perry's flag- 
ship was soon shattered, and nearly all her men killed or 
wounded, so, getting into an open small-boat, he bore his 
flag to another ship, where he continued to fight until the 
British fleet surrendered. After the victory, he wrote to his 
commander, General Harrison, on the back of an old letter, 
"We have met the enemy, and they are ours — two ships, 
two brigs, one schooner, and one sloop" (September 10, 
1813). (See map, page 155.) 

Battle of the Thames.— When General Harrison received 
the news of Perry's victory, he moved his forces across 
Lake Erie, and attacked the British at the river Thames, 
\vhere a severe battle was fought. The regulars were soon 
forced to surrender, but their Indian allies, under the brave 
Tecumseh, would not yield. The battle raged fiercely, and 
for a time the war-whoop of the Indian chief was heard 
above the roar of the conflict. But the great chieftain fell. 



158 



THE CREEK WAR. 



and the savages, no longer encouraged by his voice, fled in 
despair. B3' this victor3^, the Americans regained what Hull 
had lost, and the alliance of the Indian tribes in the North- 
west \vas broken. 

In the battle of the Thames, Tecumseh led a body of horsemen. "The American 
riders plunged with a yell on the British line. Their five hundred rifles cracked at 
once, strewing the ground with men. It was a single blow, and the battle was 
over in that part of the field. » » * Tecumseh led his men gallantly forward, 
and for a few minutes the contest was sharp and bloody. At length he fell, 
when the savages, with a loud whoop, turned and fied." — Ileaclly's Second War 
with England. 

The Creek War.— The following spring (1814), the Creek 
Indians of Alabama took up the hatchet against the whites. 
Men, women, and children w^ere murdered, and terror seized 
upon the people of the South. 

General Jackson, with a force of volunteers, defeated the 
chief. Red Eagle, in a great battle, in which no quarter 
was given ; women and children, as 
well as warriors, huddled together and 
met their doom. This victory broke the 
spirit of the Creeks. 

Lundy's Lane.— In midsummer. Lieu- 
tenant Winfield Scott gained two vic- 
tories over the British in Canada, one 
at Chippewa, the other at Lundy's 
Lane. On account of his bravery, 
Scott, who afterwards became Gen- 
eral, was called " The Hero of Lundy's 
Lane." 
Victory on Lake Champlain.— In Sep- 
tember, the British sent a large force against Plattsburg, 
which was defended by only a few hundred men. At the 
same time, a British fleet on Lake Champlain sailed to at- 
tack the American fleet under Commodore Macdonough, 
lying in Plattsburg Bay. The British land and naval forces 



•WAP OF 1B12 
CANADIAN FRONTIE 




BALTIMORE ATTACKED. 



159 




made the attack at the same moment, but Macdonough's 
fleet gained a complete victory, and when night came on, 
the land forces of the enemy hastily re- 
treated, leaving their sick and wounded 
behind. 

Washing-toninthe Hands of the Brit- 
ish. — The following year, the British 
plundered many Southern towns, and 
a large force entered Washington. They 
set fire to the Capitol, the President's 
house, and some other buildings, and 
nothing was left but their smoke- 
blackened walls. 

Baltimore Attacked.— The British 
troops, fearing an uprising of the people, 
stole out of Washington in the night, 
making their way towards Baltimore, the next point at- 
tacked. The regulars succeeded in getting near the defenses 
of the city, but halted tO hear from the fleet which had 
been bombarding Fort McHenry, the chief defense of the 
harbor. As the fort withstood the fire, and the British 
saw no prospect of success, the troops were embarked, and 
the fleet sailed away. 

Francis S. Ke3^ author of the song entitled "The Star-Spangled Banner," was 
detained on one of the British ships. All night long, while the bombardment 
was going on, he thought of the banner that floated proudly over the fort at 
the close of day, and wondered if he should see it at dawn. Between midnight 
and dawn, as he paced the deck, he composed the song, and wrote the substance 
of it on an old letter which he happened to have in his pocket. 

"O, say, can you see by the dawn's early light 

What so proudlj' we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming. 
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the clouds of the fight 

O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming? 
And the rocket's red glare, the bomb bursting in air, 
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there : 
O, say, does the star-spangled banner yet wave 
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?" 



160 EFFECTS OF THE WAR. 

Battle of New Orleans. — A force of t\Yelve thousand men, 
under General Pakenham, attacked New Orleans, which was 
defended by General Jackson, with a much smaller number 
of troops (January 8, 1815). The Americans fought behind 
breastworks of earth, the fire from their rifles mowed 
down the enemy, and the plain was strewed with the dead 
and dA'ing. The British could not stand this fire, and hast- 
ily withdrew to their ships, their loss being- over two thou- 
sand, while that of the Americans was but eight or ten 
men. 

This was the last battle of the war, and was fought two weeks after the 
treaty of peace was signed at Ghent (December 24-, 1814). Had the telegraph 
then been in operation, all this bloodshed would have been spared. 

Treaty of Peace.— The treaty at Ghent said not a word 
in regard to the right of search, the very thing the two 
nations had been quarreling about; but our navy had 
taught England a lesson, and she has never since tried to 
search a vessel carrying the stars and stripes. 

Effects of the War.— The war of 1812-1814 did much to 
encourage the manufacture of cotton and woolen goods in 
the United States. Up to 1815 nearly all the cloths in the 
stores of the country were made in English looms. When 
the w^ar broke out, cotton manufacture had not begun, 
and there were few sheep in America. The supply of Eng- 
lish woolens and cotton goods was cut off b}^ the war, and 
people were compelled to wear clothes made of flax, or flax 
and wool, called "linsej'-woolsey." Shirts and undergar- 
ments were made from tow, the fibre of flax. 

"The flax plant, when at the proper stage of growth, was pulled up by the 
roots, the earth shaken off, the plants bound in bundles, taken to a smooth 
patch of grass and spread out to be rotted by the sun and rain, then rebound, 
put into the barn, and during winter it was ' broken ' and ' swingled ' by the 
men and boj-s of the household, then combed, spun, and woven by the women. 
The wool which was used in the manufacture of 'linsej'-woolsey ' was carded 
by hand and spun on a large wheel." 



THE COTTON -WEAVING INDUSTRY. 161 

The 3-ear before the battle of Bunker Hill, James Barber, of England, invented 
a loom which could be run by water-power, and, later, the Reverend Mr. Car1> 
wright patented one which was placed in a factory at Manchester; but a mob of 
weavers burned the building because they feared power-looms would throw them 
out of emplojment (1791). As late as 1813 the power-looms of England were 
regarded as no better than hand-looms. 

The American Power -Loom. — In 1814, Francis Cabot 
Lowell, a native of Amesburj^ Massachusetts, educated at 
Harvard College, and Paul Moody, of Amesbury, a skillful 
machinist, brought out the first American power-loom, a 
machine far superior to any other of its kind known to the 
world. 

"It was placed in position, the belts adjusted, a web for a piece of cloth 
thirtj'-seven inches wide, the standard sheeting cloth of the period, put in. When 
all was ready the belt was shifted to the moving pulley, and shuttles, treadles, 
harness, beam, and batten, all began their appointed movements. To those who 
beheld it, the loom seemed to be endowed with himan intellect." 

The Cotton -Weaving" Industry.— This wonderful inven- 
tion was the beginning of the great cotton- weaving indus- 
try of the United States. In 1816, sheetings were worth 
thirty cents a yard ; in 1843, they could be bought for six 
and one-fourth cents. In 1823, a cotton mill was started 
at Lowell, Massachusetts, its looms driven by the Merri- 
mac River. Other mills followed, until factory villages and 
cities dotted New England. 

First Web of Cassimei'e.— Up to 1840, the power-loom 
was used to manufacture cotton alone; but in that year 
the loom was adapted to the weaving of woolen goods, 
and the first web of cassimere was produced. 

What One Invention Has Done.— It will be seen that this 
one invention did much to free our country from its de- 
pendence on England, and that it has made of her a great 
manufacturing nation. 

I^aborers of every class have been helped by it. Large numbers of men were 
needed to build mills, to construct and run their machinery; thousands of girls 
have found employment in spinning and weaving. Cotton, and wool-growing 
11 



162 A TARIFF. 

have become great industries; ships and cars are needed to supply the raw ma- 
terial for the factories, and take their goods to market; and farmers are kept 
busy raising food to supply all who are not food-producers. 

A Tariff. — t'or the purpose of encouraging manufacturing industries, Con- 
gress passed a bill placing duties on imported goods. The measure was warmly 
supported by John C. Calhoun, the great Southern leader, in the belief that it 
would build up a home market for the South. The duty on cotton goods was 
fi.\cd at six and one-fourth cents per yard (1816). 

Topics.— Tell about— 

1. Indian troubles. 

2. War with England. 

3. Hull's surrender at Detroit. 

4. Victories on the ocean. 

5. "Old Ironsides." 

6. Privateers. 

7. Perry's victory. 

8. Battle of the Thames. 

9. The Creek war. 

10. Lundy's Lane. 

11. Victory on Lake Chainplain. 

12. The capture of Washington. 

13. Attack on Baltimore. 

14. "The Star-Spanglcd Banner." 

15. Battle of New Orleans. 

16. The treaty of peace. 

17. Effects of the war. 

18. The American power-loora. 

19. The cotton-weaving industry. 

20. The first web of cassimere. 

21. What one invention has done. 

22. A tariff. 



SETTLING THE GREAT VALLEY. 



163 



Chapter XXX. 

SETTLING THE GREAT VALLEY. 

Ordinance of 1787.— In 1787, Congress passed an act for 
the government of the Northwest Territory, the region 
north of the Ohio and east of the Mississippi. One of the 
clauses of this act forbade slavery, and for this reason the 
act itself became noted as the Ordinance of 1787. Under it, 
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan became 
free states. 

Homes West of the AUeg-hanies.— Soon after the adop- 
tion of the ordinance, people began to seek homes west of 




CINCINNATI IN 1787. 



the Alleghanies. As there were no wagon roads, the earliest 
settlers carried the few things most needed on pack-horses. 
Later, the government opened a "National Road" from 
Cumberland, Maryland, to WheeHng, Virginia, now West 
Virginia. Along this road rolled an almost endless stream 
of covered wagons with emigrants for Ohio, Kentucky, and 
Indiana. Rafts and barges were built on the upper waters 
of the Ohio, on which families with their goods floated down 
the river, to form settlements on its banks. 




(164) 



SETTLERS FROM THE OLD WORLD. 



165 



Daniel Boone. — As early as 1759, 
Daniel Boone, a famous hunter, 
went, ^vith five others, from North 
Carolina, to explore the forests 
of Kentucky. He was captured by 
Indians, but escaped, and reached 
home in 1771. Two years later, 
he took his family and other set- 
tlers to the wilds he had explored, 
where they were in perpetual dan- 
ger from the savages. Boone had 
many hard fights with the Indians, 
and in 1775 built a fort on the 
Kentucky River. Several attacks 
were made on the fort, in which 
the red-skins were beaten back ; 
but, in 1778 Boone was captured 
and taken to Detroit. He escaped 
and returned to his settlement, 
where his two sons fell in battle. 
After all his hardships, Boone lost 
his lands through a defect in the 
title, and went to a new wilderness 
in Missouri, to follo\v hunting 
and trapping. Died September 20, 
1820. His remains, with those of 
his wife, rest in the cemetery at 
Frankfort, Kentucky. — See Spark's 
American liiogrnpby. 



How the Settlers Lived.— In 

those early days, the settlers 
had no store goods except 
such as vvrere brought over the 
mountams from the East. 
They lived in log cabins, with 
floors of earth, or of hewn 
logs; sat on home-made 
stools; slept on bedsteads of 
poles; ate from Avooden dishes; 
and wove most of the clothes 
thej'' wore. 

Going" to Market.— When the 
settlers began to raise some- 
thing to sell, flat-boats were 
loaded with produce, and 
floated down to New Orleans, 
the boatmen sometimes walk- 
ing home. Water-roads were 
the chief dependence, and when 
steamboats began to run (1812), goods and produce were 
taken along the navigable streams of the "Great Valley." 
Settlements then sprung up and grew rapidly. 

"In 1793, the first newspaper in the Northwest was issued at Cincinnati, while 
it was yet a town of about a hundred log cabins. In 1794, two large passen- 
ger boats ran regularly between Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. They were moved 
by oars, had bullet-proof sides, and were armed with cannon to protect them 
from the Indians." 

The Orleans was the first steamboat built for Western rivers. She was 
launched at Pittsburgh, October 11, 1811. In August, 1818, the first steam 
vessel was set afloat on the Great Lakes. In 1886, there were eleven hundred 
and five steamers in use on Western rivers; twelve hundred and eighty on the 
Northern lakes ; twenty-six hundred and sixtj'-tvi'o on the Atlantic and Gulf 
Coasts, and four hundred and twenty-five on the Pacific Coast. 

Settlers from the Old World.— After the war of 1812, 
still larger numbers went West to seek their fortunes, and 



166 



TWO NEW STATES. 



settlers began to come to our shores from the Old World. 
Twent3^-two thousand came the last j-^ear of Madison's 
administration (1817). 
New States. — Two states were admitted to the Union, 




CHICAGO I.V T830. 

Louisiana (1812), and Indiana (1816). Louisiana took its 
name from Louis, King of France, and Indiana from the 
Indians. 

Topics— Tell about— 

1. The Ordinance of 1787. 

2. Homes west of the Alleghanies. 

3. How the settlers lived. 

4. Going to market. 

5. Settlers from the Old World. 

6. New states. 



Chapter XXXI. 

MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION -1817-1 825 . 

Era of Good Feeling".— In the presidential election of 
1816, James Monroe, the Republican candidate, was chosen 
over Rufus King, the Federalist. In 1820, Monroe was re- 
elected for a second term without opposition ; but for form's 
sake, one elector voted for John Quincy Adams, so that 
it might be said that no man save Washington had re- 
ceived every vote for president. The war was over, and 



WHY SLAVERY DID NOT DIE OUT. 



167 




for a time the two parties worked for the same measures. 
There was an "era of good feeling." 

War with the Serainoles.— The Seminole Indians in Flor- 
ida, many of whom had married runaway slaves, were giv- 
ing a good deal of trouble to slave- 
holders on the southern border, and 
General Jackson w^as sent against thein. 
He did not succeed in subduing them, 
but marched his troops into their coun- 
try, w^hich then belonged to Spain. This 
led to difficulty with the Spanish Gov- 
ernment, which was settled by the sale 
of Florida to the United States for 
five million dollars (1819). 

First Steamship to Cross the Ocean. — The steamship Savannah was the first 
to cross the Atlantic to Europe (1S19). As she neared the coast of Ireland, the 
people on shore thought she was on fire, and sent out a ship to her relief. She 
carried sails which w^ere spread when the -wind was fair, just as the ocean steam- 
ers do to-day. Although this voyage was successful, ocean navigation did not 
really begin until twenty years later (1838), when the Sirius and the Great West- 
ern made the trip from England to the United States. 

Why Slavery Did Not Die Out.— The invention of the 
spinning-jenny and the power-loom led to the establishment 
of immense cotton factories in England and New England, 
and to a great demand for cotton, which, by the aid of 
Whitney's gin, could be raised by slave labor in the warm 
states of the South at a large profit. This caused a great 
demand for slaves to till new and vast plantations; and, 
as the foreign slave trade had been prohibited, the cotton- 
planters bought their slaves in Virginia, Kentucky, and 
other border states, and slave-raising for Southern markets 
became a profitable business. In this way, all the South- 
em States came to be strongly in favor of slavery, and 
wished to see it spread over new territories. (See Jeffer- 
son's administration, page 152.) 



168 



SLAVERY IN THE TERRITORIES. 



Slave dealers became cominon all over the South, and slaves were bought and 
sold just as people in the North buy and sell horses. A strong man or v^-oman 
who could endure hard work on the cotton plantations brought a large sum; 
good cooks, carpenters, and blacksmiths also found a ready sale; house ser\-ants 
and waiting maids were in demand ; but the infirm and aged brought very little. 
Slave markets were found in all the chief cities, and men, women, and children 
were often put x\p at auction to be sold to the highest bidder. 

The Feeling- in the North.— The people of the North 
were becoming more and more opposed to slavery. They 
thought it wrong to bu}^ and sell men, and wished to see 
the territories kept open to free labor. 

Slavery in the Territories.— During Monroe's adminis- 
tration several new states were admitted, and the great 
question was, whether they should come in with or with- 
out slaver}'. For a time a free state and a slave state 
came in by turns. Indiana, a free state, was followed by 
Mississippi, a slave state (1817) ; then Illinois, free (1818), 
and Alabama, slave (1819); Maine, free (1820), and Mis- 
souri, slave (1821). 

The Missouri Compromise.— When Missouri asked to oe 
admitted to the Union, members of Congress from the 
North opposed the admission of any 
more slave states. A great and angry 
contest followed, in which the right 
and wrong of slavery were freeh^ dis- 
cussed. At last, mainly through the 
efforts of Henry Cla3',the question was 
settled by what is known as the Mis- 
souri Compromise, or the Compromise 
of 1820. Under this measure, Missouri 
was to come in as a slave state, but 
in new states west of Missouri and north of the parallel 
of 36° 30' north latitude, the southern border of Missouri, 
slavery was prohibited. Nothing was said of slavery south 
of that line. 




./"y^yv^^vx jT xy^^ 



THE TARIFF QUESTION. 



169 



The Monroe Doctrine.— The 

Spanish colonies in South 
America had ebelled and es- 
tabHshed governments of their 
own. Spain was too weak to 
make them submit to her rule, 
and it was thought that some 
other nations of Europe were 
about to come to her aid. 
President Monroe, therefore, 
asserted in a message to Con- 
gress (1823), that "An at- 
tempt by any nation of Europe 
to reduce an independent na- 
tion of North or South Amer- 
ica to the condition of a col- 
ony would not be viewed 
with indifference by the United 
States." He also said, "Asa 
principle, the American conti- 
nents are henceforth not to be 
considered as subjects for fu- 
ture colonization by any Eu- 
ropean power." This is what 
is known as the Monroe Doc- 
trine. The governments of 
the Old World were thus plain- 
ly told that the people of the 
New World must be allowed 
to manage their own affairs. 
The Tariff Question.— One 
of the great questions of this administration was that of 
the tariff, or duty, on goods brought from foreign coun- 



Henry Clay, orator and states- 
man, was born near Riehmond, 
Virginia, April 12, 1771. His 
father was a Baptist preacher, 
who died when Henry was but 
six years old. His mother, a 
noble woman, married again ten 
years later, and moved to Ken- 
tucky, leaving Henry, the fifth of 
seven children, a clerk in a retail 
store. He soon found employment 
as a copj-ist in the office of the 
High Court of Chancery, where 
he remained four years. He then 
studied law, was admitted to the 
bar, and, though not yet twenty- 
one, followed his mother to Ken- 
tucky, opened an office at Lexing- 
ton, and soon rose to eminence in 
his profession. When Kentucky 
separated from her parent, Vir- 
ginia, Mr. Clay besought the con- 
vention that framed the constitu- 
tion to make provision for the 
abolition of slavery, but he was 
overruled. He became a United 
States Senator; was for many 
years Speaker of the House of Rep- 
resentatives ; was Commissioner of 
Peace after the war of 1812-14; and 
was Secretary of State under John 
Quincy Adams. He again became 
a member of the United States Sen- 
atefrom 1831 till 1842; was thrice 
a candidate for the presidencj^ and 
once came near being elected. He 
was Senator for the last time from 
1849 till 1852. Mr. Clay a'lways 
strongly favored the protection of 
home industries and internal im- 
provements ; vi'as the author of 
several great compromise meas- 
ures; and supported the American 
policy of President Monroe. Died 
at Washington, June 29, 1852. In 
the cemetery at Frankfort, Ken- 
tucky, stands a fine monument 
erected to his memory. 



170 



LA FAYETTE S VISIT. 



tries. The new Whig party favored a high tariff on such 
goods as could be made at home. The tariff, it was argued, 
would keep foreign manufacturers from underselling our 
own ; and cotton, vsroolen, and other factories would spring 
up on our streams, giving employment to thousands of 
workmen, who would consume the food raised on Ameri- 
can farms, and thus save the cost of transportation to 
distant lands. As this duty was designed to protect home 
manufactures, it was called a "protective tariff." 

On the other hand, the Democrats favored what are called 
low duties. They thought that duties on foreign goods 

made the prices high, and 
helped the manufacturer at 
the expense of other peo- 
ple ; and they claimed that 
more money \vould be re- 
ceived by the government 
if the duties were low, and 
people would have to pay 
less tax for its support. 
The Whig party prevailed, 
and duties on imports were 
increased (1824). 

La Fayette's Visit.— Near tiic close 
of Monroe's administration (1824) 
the United States was visited lij' La 
Fayette. He passed throusli the coun- 
try receiving the homage of crowds 
^^ assembled to greet him as the nation's 
guest. Patriots who had fought by 
his side came forth to meet him, and 
on the old battle-fields he was wel- 
comed by a throng of shouting freemen. To show the gratitude of the nation, 
Congress presented him with two hundred thousand dollars, and a township 
of land. 

Bunker Hill Monument. — The corner-stone of Bunker Hill monument was laid 
by General La Fayette, on the 17th of June, 1825, the fiftieth anniversary of the 




BtlNKKR HII.L MONUMENT. 



ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 



171 



battle. The monument is built of granite, is two hundred and twenty-one feet 
high, and stands on the spot where the redoubt of earth was thrown up on 
Breed's Hill. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. The era of good feeling. 

2. "War with the Seminoles. 

3. The first ocean steamboat. 

4. Why slavery did not die out. 

5. Slave dealers. 

6. The feeling in the North. 

7. Slavery in the territories. 

8. The Missouri Compromise. 

9. The Monroe Doctrine. 

10. The tariff question. 

11. La Fayette's visit. 

12. Bunker Hill inonument. 



Chapter XXXII. 

JOHN QUINCY ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION- 1825-1829. 

All the presidents up to this time had taken part in the 
Revolutionary War, or in founding the government, but 
John Quincy Adams was only nine 
years old w^hen his father signed the 
Declaration of Independence. 

Condition of the Country.— During 
Adams' administration the country 
was at peace, and rapidly growing in 
wealth and population. Most of the 
Indian tribes east of the Mississippi 
had sold their lands to the govern- 
ment, and had been removed west of 
that river, and the interior of the country was now open 
for settlement. What the country most needed was better, 
quicker, and cheaper transportation, and it had not long 
to w^ait. 




172 



THE ERIE CANAL. 



The Erie Canal. — A system of canals had already been 
begun, and the Erie Canal, connecting the Great Lakes 
with the Hudson and the port of New York, was opened 




OPKNINOOFTHE 
ERIE CANAL. 



in 1825. Governor 

De Witt CHnton, of New 

York, \vho had planned 

the canal, and carried the 

w^ork forw^ard in spite of ridicule and strong opposition, 

was, at its opening, borne its whole length in a barge, and 



DEATH OF TWO GREAT MEN. 173 

welcomed at every town by the ringing of bells and the 
firing of cannon. 

The canal soon became the great route between the East 
and the West. From early spring to late autumn, passen- 
gers, and merchandise of every kind needed by the people 
of the West, flowed through it in a constant stream, while 
in the other direction the products of Western farms poured 
to Eastern markets. 

Death of Two Great Men. — The 4-th of July, 1826, is memorable for the death 
of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Both had signed the Declaration of In- 
dependence; and both had filled the highest office their countrj-men could give. 
Though they had differed and hotly disputed in their earlier days, they became 
warm friends and frequently wrote letters to each other in later life. Death came 
to them on the fiiftieth anniversary of their country's independence. The last 
words of JeiTerson were, "Is this the Fourth?" and the last words of Adams, 
"Thomas Jefferson still lives." The people of the village where Adams lived were 
celebrating the day, and he had sent the toast, "Independence forever." As he 
lay dying his watchers heard the distant shouts of the multitude, called forth 
by the reading of the old patriot's last message. 

First Railroad.— The greatest event of that day was the 
opening of the first American railway (1827). It led from 
the wharves at Quincy, Massachusetts, to granite quarries 
three miles away. At first, the cars were drawn by horses ; 
but after two years a locomotive engine was brought over 
from England and used on the road. The first passenger 
train was run on the Baltimore & Ohio railroad in 1830. 

What People Thought. — Many people ridiculed the idea of a railroad, thinking 
that the ox cart and "one-horse chaise" were good enough for them. No one 
dreamed that within fifty years railroads would be built almost every w^here; 
that they would bring all parts of our great country near together; that the 
cars would carry the products of our fields, our mines, our factories, — everything 
that we buy or sell; that in 1889 there would be more than one hundred and 
fifty thousand miles of railroad in the United States. 

Temperance Societies. — in 1789, the very year of Washington's inauguration, 
two hundred farmers of Litchfield County, Connecticut, agreed that they would 
not use any distilled liquor in doing their farm work the ensuing season. Simi- 
lar societies vi'ere formed in 1811; but it was not until 1826 that the first pub- 
lic temperance society in the United States was organized, and total abstinence 
was not required until a meeting of a national convention in Saratoga, New 



174? Jackson's administration. 

York, ten years later. The Washingtonian moveinent began in Baltimore in 
1840, six men of intemperate habits signing a pledge to totally abstain from 
intoxicating drinks. On the first anniversary of the societj', one thousand re- 
formed drunkards walked in procession. 

Down to this period, drunkenness had been an enormous evil in our own 
country, as well as in Europe. For a gentleman to get drunk after dinner was 
no offense against the rules of polite society; and it was not very improper for 
a clergj'man to own a distillery. Rum was kept by all families, and visitors, 
callers, or workmen expected an offer of some kind of liquor. People thought 
they must take a morning glass to promote appetite, an evening glass to in- 
sure sociability ; the farmer needed it to keep him cool in summer and warm in 
winter. The well must have it in order to keep from being sick, and the sick 
must drink to get well. It was said to be good for everything. 

Politics. — President Adams was a Wliig, and his party 
placed a high dut3^ on foreign manufactures. The factories 
of New England increased, and manufacturers were pros- 
perous; but the people of the West and South, who lived 
by farming, were opposed to the tariff, and Mr. Adams was 
not re-elected. 

Topics. — Tell what yoii can of — 

1. John Quincy Adams. 

2. Condition of the country. 

3. The Erie canal. 

4. Death of two great men. 

5. The first railroad. 

6. What people thought. 

7. Temperance societies. 

8. Politics. 



Chapter XXXIII. 

ANDREW JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION- 1829-1837. 

General Andrew Jackson, "The Hero of New Orleans," 
was chosen by the Democrats, and held the office of Presi- 
dent for eight years. He had but little book-learning, his 
temper w^as violent, his manner rough, his speech blunt; 
but he was honest, and aimed to do what he believed to be 



STATE RIGHTS. 



175 



right, in spite of all opposition. He was so firm, or unjdeld- 
ing, in his policy, that his party gave him the name of 
"Old Hickory." 

State Rights.— From the beginning of the government, 
some had claimed that a state had a right to set aside or 
refuse to obey any law of Congress; 
that it could leave the Union if it 
chose, or, in other words, that the 
authority of the state was superior to 
that of the general government, and 
ought to be obeyed when there was 
disagreement. This Avas known as the 
doctrine of State Rights. 

The people of the South were much 
against the high tariff, and South Caro- 
lina passed a law allowing foreign goods to come into her 
ports without paying the duty required by the general gov- 
ernment. She also threatened to leave the Union if the 
United States tried to collect the duty; and medals were 
struck off with the inscription, "J. C. Calhoun, First Presi- 
dent of the Southern Confederacy." 

Jackson was not friendly to the tariff, but it was his 
duty to see the law of the United States enforced, and he 
lost no time in issuing a proclamation telling the people 
that it must be obeyed, and that the State could not leave 
the Union. At the same time he sent ships of war and an 
armed force to South Carolina, in command of General 
Wjnfield Scott, and the trouble was soon brought to an 
end. 




This event threw the whole country into great excitement, and for a time it 
seemed as though there might be civil war. But Henry Clay again came for- 
ward with a compromise, and Congress soon passed a bill -which gradually re- 
duced the duties of which Carolina complained, and the two parties were 
satisfied. 



176 



THE UNITED STATES BANK. 



The United States Bank.— 
Jackson was much opposed 
to the United States Bank, and 
took strong ground against it 
in his first message. He be- 
Heved that the government 
funds deposited in the bank 
were used to enrich the man- 
agers, to the injury of the peo- 
ple; that the bank rewarded 
those who helped, and pun- 
ished those who opposed its 
plans. Congress passed a bill 
renewing the charter of the 
bank, which was about to ex- 
pire. Jackson refused to ap- 
prove, or vetoed, the bill, and 
it did not become a law. He 
afterwards removed the gov- 
ernment funds, and had them 
placed in several of the state banks. This act caused ex- 
citement all over the country. The bank was obliged to 
give up business, and its stockholders lost all their capital. 

The United States Bank was recommended by Alexander Hamilton, first Sec- 
retary of the Treasury, and a bill to establish it was passed bj- Congress and 
signed by Washington in 1791. It was established at Philadelphia, with branches 
at different points. The opposition to it became so strong that its charter was 
not renewed at its expiration, in 1811; and from that time on to 1816 all the 
banking business of the countrj' was conducted by local banks. At the close of 
the war of 1812-14, all the local banks had suspended specie payment, and the 
people were so sorely pressed for good monej', that they clamored for another 
United States Bank as a means of relief. One was chartered in 1816, and went 
into operation in 1817, with a capital of thirtj'-five million dollars, of which 
amount the government subscribed seven million dollars, and individuals twenty- 
eight million dollars. 

Wild Speculation. — The state banks which had received the funds made large 
loans and money became so plenty that the price of everj-thing went up, and 



John Caldwell Calhoun was bom 
in Abbeville District, South Caro- 
lina, March 18, 1782. He was 
graduated at Yale, studied law at 
a school in Litchfield, Connecticut, 
and began the practice of his pro- 
fession in his native district when 
twenty-five j'-ears of age. He was 
thoughtful and persevering, and 
soon took high rank as a lawyer. 
Having a taste for politics he en- 
tered that field, and soon became a 
member of the state legislature, 
and then of Congress. He was 
appointed Secretary of War under 
President Monroe, chosen Vice- 
President in 1824, and again in 
1828. Was elected United States 
Senator in 1831, Secretary of 
State in 1844-5, and again be- 
came Senator in 1845. In the 
Senate Calhoun took first rank as 
a debater. He had great influence 
in his own state, and his doctrine 
of State Rights led her to the verge 
of civil \var in 1832, and caused 
her to inaugurate secession and the 
great Rebellion. Died in Wash- 
ington, March 31, 1850. 



THE MORMONS. 



177 




people began to speculate in the hope of becoming suddenly rich. All over the 
"West, towns were laid out and lots were sold at high prices, where there was 
■not a house, or, at most, only a few cheap shells. In a little time the excitement 
was over, and the rich owners of corner-lots were not worth a dollar. 

Mormons.— In 1830, there sprung up a sect called Mor- 
mons, or Latter-day Saints, whose leader, Joseph Smith, 
claimed to be a prophet, or seer. The 
first community of Mormons was 
founded at Kirtland, Ohio; the next, 
at Independence, Missouri; the third, 
at Nauvoo, Illinois, where they built 
a thriving little city and erected a 
splendid temple, which they dedicated 
to the worship of God. 

But they had sore trouble with their 
non-believing neighbors, and each place 
was, in turn, deserted. At Nauvoo, their prophet was 
killed by a mob, and his followers sought shelter at a 
place on the Missouri River, which they named Kane. 
From this point men v^rere sent forward into the wilder- 
ness to spy out the "promised land for an everlasting 
habitation." The Great Salt Lake Valley was chosen, 
and the Mormon pilgrims, guided by their new leader, 
Brigham Young, pressed forward to their inheritance 
(1847-1848). They soon became a strong and prosperous 
colony, founding Salt Lake City, and building a tabernacle 
with seats for thousands of worshipers. 

The Mormons accept both the Bible and the Book of Mormon as the word 
of God ; and believe in a prophet who stands at the head of their church. Their 
religion allows a man to marry more than one wife, some of the wealthy lead- 
ers taking many. The practice of polj'gamy, as it is called, has led to much 
trouble, most people regarding it as a disgrace to our country; and laws to sup- 
press it have been passed by Congress. Many people are living in Salt Lake 
City who are not in sj-mpathy ^vith the doctrines of the Mormons, and all leg- 
islation is slowly passing out of the hands of this strange sect. 
12 



178 



AN ANTI- SLAVERY PAPER. 



An Anti-Slavery Paper.— In 1831, William Lloyd Garrison 
established a \veekly paper in Boston, called "The Libera- 
tor." He took for its motto, "Our country is the world 
— our countrymen are all mankind," and argxied in favor 
of the emancipation of the slaves. In 1832, those who 
agreed with Garrison formed an anti-slavery society, and 
other societies of the kind soon sprung up elsewhere. The 
publication of the Liberator caused excite- 
ment in the North as well as the South. The 
legislature of Georgia offered a large reward 
for Garrison's head, and he 
was mobbed in Boston. Pres- 
ident Jackson tried to have a 
Congress for- 
carrying of 




(VM. LLOYD GARKISON. 

law passed by 
bidding the 





JOHN G. WHITTIEE. 



anti - slaver3^ 

books and pa- wenuell i-hillips. 

pers in the mails. 

The Black Hawk War.— 
During Jackson's term (1832) 
there was trouble with the Indians. The 
Sacs and Foxes in the Northwest, under a 
noted leader, named Black Hawk, refused to submit to 
the authority of the United States, and had to be sub- 
dued by force. 

The Florida War.— As the Seminoles living in Florida would not leave their 
homes lor others provided for them west of the Mississippi, a force was sent to re- 
move them, and war followed (1835). The Seminoles took refuge in the swamps, 
or everglades, where the soldiers were unable to reach them, and the war lasted 
a long time, costing the government many lives, and thirty million dollars, before 
the Indians gave up, ahnost extinct. 

Osceola.— The principal chief, Osceola, had taken a half-breed wife who was bom 
in the everglades, and once when she went with him to one of the United States 
forts, she was seized as a slave by the former owner of her mother. Osceola was 
placed in irons while she was taken into captivity; and, after his release, he pledged 
himself to vengeance against the whites. He became the leader in the war, till 
treacherously seized under a flag of truce. He was then confined in a fort until his 
death . — Iligginson . 



BIOGRAPHIES. 



179 



William Lloyd Garrison, the pio- 
neer of the modern anti-slaverj^ 
movement in the United States, 
was born in Newburj'port, Mas- 
sachusetts, December 12, 1804-. 
Died May 24, 1879. He learned 
the business of printing, and be- 
came a\vriter for the press in early 
life. All his writings show a phil- 
anthropic spirit, and deep sj'mpa- 
thyfor the poor and the oppressed. 
In 1829, he joined Benjamin Lundy, 
a Qiiaker abolitionist, in the pub- 
lication of a paper at Baltimore. 
In the first issue of the paper under 
their joint control, Mr. Garrison 
denounced the taking of a cargo of 
slaves from that city to New Or- 
leans as "domestic piracy." For 
this he was fined, and imprisoned 
until his fine was paid by a friend. 
He now traveled northward, deliv- 
ering lectures, in which he called 
slavery a sin, and demanded its 
abolition in the name of God and 
hunianitj'. From this time on, tmtil 
1863, when slavery was abolished, 
he continued to plead for the slave 
with tongue and pen. Mr. Garri- 
son rested his cause wholly on 
moral grounds, never urging vio- 
lence or the shedding of a drop of 
human blood. 



John G. Whittier, the Quaker 
poet, w^as born at Haverhill, Mas- 
sachusetts, December 17, 1807. 
He worked on his farm, and at 
shoemaking until eighteen, sending 
occasional poems to the local news- 
paper. From 1 829 to 1836 he was 
editor of several newspapers. In 
1833 he took up the cause of the 
slave in our countrj-, and never 
ceased his warfare against the sys- 
tem of slavery until its fall in 1863. 
The spirit of humanity and patri- 
otism shown in his writings make 
him very dear to the public. 



Wendell Phillips was born in 
Bostonin 1811, graduated at Har- 
vard in 1831, and at the Cam- 
bridge law school in 1833. He 
joined the abolitionists, and 
gained a v^'orld-wide fame as an 
orator. The first person to inter- 
est him in this subject was Anne 
Terry Greene, who afterwards be- 
came his wife, his guide, and in- 
spiration. His first great speech 
against slavery was delivered in 
Faneuil Hall, December, 1837, at 
a meeting "to notice in a suitable 
manner the murder of Rev. Elijah 
P. Lovejoj', at Alton, Illinois." Mr. 
Phillips remained a " Garrisonian 
abolitionist" to the end; he was 
also an advocate of temperance, 
labor, and other reforms. Died 
February 2, 1884. 



Frederick Douglass, the m ost emi- 
nent colored man in this countrj-, 
is a mulatto, the son of a slave 
mother. He was born near Eas- 
ton, Maryland, about 1817, but 
lived in Baltimore after he was ten 
years of age, where he secretly 
taught himself to read and write. 
He fled from slavery when twenty- 
one years old, and going to New 
Bedford, Massachusetts, support- 
ed himself by day labor on the 
wharves and in the shops. He 
spoke in an anti-slavery meeting in 
Nantucket with much power, and 
was soon made agent of the Mas- 
sachusetts Anti-Slavery Society. 
He lectured all over the Northern 
States, and in nearly all the large 
towns in England, on €he subject 
of slaverj'. He has edited two 
papers and published his autobi- 
ography'. In 1876, he was ap- 
pointed Marshal of the District of 
Columbia, and is now (1889) Min- 
ister of the United States to the 
Republic of Hayti. 




HENRY W. LONGFELLOW. 





WM. CILLEN BKVANT. 



EDGAR ALLEN POE. 





NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE. 



JAMES EHNIMURE COOPER. 





GEORGE BANCROFT. 




WASHINGTON IRYLNG. 



RALPH WALDO EMERSON. 



(ISO) 



EDUCATION — NEWSPAPERS. 181 

Education. — Most of the states had now estabHshed pub- 
lic schools, and people clearly saw that voters should be 
taught enough to enable them to vote wisely ; that there 
is no safety for the state whose children are left to grow 
up in ignorance. Through the influence of Horace Mann, 
then secretary of her board of education, Massachusetts 
opened two normal schools, the first in the United States. 
More than sixty colleges had been established in the sev- 
eral states. 

Newspapers. — With the introduction of the rail-car and 
the steamboat came a change in the newspapers of the 
country. The daily paper of small price and wide circula- 
tion had its beginning during Jackson's administration. 
The New York Sun appeared in 1833, the New York Her- 
ald, in 1835. 

American Writers.— Before this time Washington Irving's 
prose writings had been widely read, Cooper had begun 
his charming tales, Webster had issued the first edition of 
his dictionary, and Bryant, Dana, and Halleck were known 
as poets. The eight years of Jackson's administration mark 
the beginning of a real American literature, and the Eng- 
lishman who had sneeringly asked, "Who reads an Ameri- 
can book?" was soon answered. Poe published his first 
volume of poems in 1829 ; Whittier appeared in a prose 
volume. Legends of New England, in 1831; Longfellow, in 
a volume on the poetry of Spain, in 1833 ; Bancroft pub- 
lished the first volume of his History of the United States 
in 1834; Emerson, a volume called Nature, in 1835; Holmes, 
a volume of poems in 1836 ; Hawthorne, his first popular 
work, Twice Told Tales, in 1837; and Prescott's Ferdi- 
nand and Isabella appeared the same year. 

The Use of Coal. — The business of coal mining has grown up within the last 
fifty or sixty years. Before the Revolutionary War it was known that coal ex- 



182 FRICTION MATCHES. 

istcd in Penns3'lvania, and so earlj- as 1769, a blacksmith in Wyoming Valley 
used coal found on the surface of the ground. Forty 3'ears later he succeeded 
in burning it in a grate as fuel. During the Revolution it was used for black- 
s:niths' fires in the armory at Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and the Lehigh Coal Com- 
pany was formed in 1792, but it did little more than purchase lands. So late 
as 1812 a quantity ^vas taken to Philadelphia, but the owner could not sell 
it. It was not until 1825 that coal began to be used to any great extent in 
factories, and it was somewhat later when it became a common fuel in pri- 
vate houses. The whole amount of anthracite sent to market in 1820 was but 
three hundred and sixtj'-five wagon loads. Its first successful use on steamboats 
and railroads ^vas in 1836-7. 

Friction Matches. — in 1829, John Walker, of England, invented loco-foco, or 
friction matches. They found their way to this country in 1831, or 1832, and 
were sold for a cent apiece. In the fall of 1836, John D. Phillips, of Springfield, 
Massachusetts, received the first patent for their manufacture in the United States ; 
but it was several years before they took the place of the flint and tinder, \vith 
^vhich a fire was formerlj' struck. Before the introduction of matches, every house- 
■\vife, just before retiring for the night, carefullj' covered her fire with ashes in order 
that it might keep till morning. When it ^vent out, some one was sent post-haste 
to a neighbor's to obtain a supply. The writer of this recalls more than one early 
morning walk to a farm-house half a mile or more away, "on this errand bent." 
This one little invention has done much to increase the comforts of daily life. 
How could w^e get along without the match ? 

Mowing, Reaping, and Threshing Machines.— The Manning mower was in- 
vented in 1831, and the Ketcham in 1844; the McCormick reaper in 1831, 
and the Hussey reaper in 1833. Before this period, all the hay in the countrj- 
v^'as cut ^vith the scythe, all the grain with the back-breaking sickle and cradle. 
These inventions have made the farmer's labor much lighter ; they have en- 
abled him to raise immense fields of grain, and increased the value of West- 
ern lands. American reajiing machines are now used in all the countries of 
Europe where cereals are largely grown. Threshing machines were rare in the 
United States until 1835. At first they did nothing but thresh. Then came in- 
ventions for separating and cleaning. Many persons now living can remember 
when nearly all the grain was threshed with a flail or bj' tramping with horses 
or oxen. 

Removing- Political Opponents.— General Jackson was 
the first president to remove his political opponents from 
office, and put his own pjirty friends in the places thus 
made vacant. The nation was out of debt and prosper- 
ous; and the census of 1830 gave a population of nearly 
thirteen millions. 

New States.— Arkansas (1836) and Michigan (1837) 
Avere iidded to the Union. 



VAN buren's administration. 



183 



Topics— Tell about — 

1. General Andrew Jackson. 

2. State rights. 

3. The United States Bank. 

4. Wild speculation. 

5. An anti-slavery paper. 

6. The Black Hawk war. 

7. The Florida war. 

8. Education. 

9. Newspapers. 

10. American writers. 

11. The use of coal. 

12. Friction matches. 

13. Mowing, reaping, and threshing machines. 

14. Removing political opponents. 

15. New states. 



Chapter XXXIV. 

VAN BUREN'S ADMINISTRATION- 1837-1841. 

Martin Van Buren, a Democrat, followed Jackson. 

Internal Improvements. — The Whigs were in favor of a 
United States bank, and they wished 
the United States to build harbors, 
roads, and canals, and make other pub- 
lic improvements. The Democrats were 
opposed to a United States bank, and 
thought each state should make its 
own improvements. The Whigs would 
give more power to the general govern- 
ment ; while many Democrats favored 
"State Rights." 

Three Great Leaders.— Daniel Webster, of Massachusetts, 
and Henry Clay, of Kentucky, probably the greatest ora- 
tors this country has had, were the Whig leaders. John 




184 



THE MOB SPIRIT. 



C. Calhoun, of South Caro- 
lina, a skillful debater, was 
the leader of the Democrats. 
Calhoun thought a state could 
nullify or set aside a law of 
Congress, and he has been 
called the ''Great Nullifier." 
In this respect he was opposed 
to Jackson and many other 
Democrats. 

Panic of 1837.— During 
Jackson's adminstraticn peo- 
ple had been borrowing a 
great deal of money of the 
banks, investing in Western 
town lots and selling out on 
credit, purchasing immense 
quantities of foreign goods for 
sale, and ever^'body seemed to 
be getting rich. But Van 
Buren was hardly seated be- 
fore a crash came (1837). 

Men were unable to pay for 
the lots they had bought, banks and merchants could not 
collect their debts, and a panic spread over all the states. 
Banks suspended, merchants failed, factories stopped, thou- 
sands were out of work, states became bankruj^t, and the 
government itself was much embarrassed. Great numbers 
of people were ruined, and it was a long time before pros- 
perity returned. 

The Mob Spirit.— The agitation of the slavery question 
continued, and many anti-slavery meetings in the North 
were dispersed by mobs. Mr. Garrison, who had attempted 



Daniel Webster was born at 
Salisburj', New Hampshire, Janu- 
ary 18, 1782; died at Marshfield, 
Massachusetts, October 24, 1852. 
He had to ^vork his own way in 
the world, and paid a portion of 
his expenses at Dartmouth College 
by teaching school, an employment 
which he followed for some time 
after he completed his course. He 
studied law, and rose to the high- 
est rankin his profession. In 1813 
he was elected to Congress, where 
he soon stood at the verj' front in 
debate. His speech in the Senate 
in reply to Hayne, of South Caro- 
lina, setting forth the powers of 
the National Government in a 
masterly manner, gave him a 
world-wide fame as an orator and 
statesman. Mr. Webster held the 
position of Secretarj- of State under 
William Henry Harrison, and also 
under Fillmore. He opposed the 
annexation of Texas, but favored 
the compromise measures of 1850. 
(See Omnibus BUI, j)age194.) He 
delivered manj- remarkable ora- 
tions, one of which \vas at the lay- 
ing of the corner-stone of Bunker 
Hill monument. (See page 170.) 
His farm at Marshfield gave him 
great delight, and he was fond of 
the rod and gun. 



RIGHT OF PETITION DEMED. 



185 




to address the Female Anti-Slavery Society in Boston, was 
led through the streets with a rope around his neck; a 
public hall in Philadelphia where a 
woman's anti-slavery meeting had met 
was burned ; and even in New England 
schools for colored children were bro- 
ken up. The editor of an anti-slavery 
paper at Alton, Illinois, Reverend 
Elijah P. Lovejoy, v^as killed by a mob. 

The furniture in the dwelHng of Lew- 
is Tappan, of New York, was taken 
into the streets and burned because he 
had spoken against slavery at a meeting on the 4th of 
July. Churches held by colored congregations in New York 
were shattered; and forty-four dwellings in Philadelphia 
occupied by harmless and helpless colored families were 
destroyed or seriously damaged.* 

Right of Petition Denied.— For the purpose of arresting 
agitation on the subject of slavery and restoring tranquil- 
lity to the public mind, Congress passed the following reso- 
olution, which remained in force for several years : 

"Resolved, That all petitions, memorials, and papers touching the abolition 
of slavery, or the buying, selling, or transferring of slaves in anj' state, district, 
or ten-itory of the United States be laid upon the table without being debated, 
printed, read, or referred; and no further action whatever shall be had thereon." 
Passed December 21, 1837. 

Topics.— Tell about— 

1. Internal improvements. 

2. Three great leaders. 

3. Panic of 1837. 

4. The mob spirit. 

5. The right of petition denied. 



^ See Greeley's American Conflict. 



186 POLK'S ADMINISTRATION. 



Chapter XXXV. 

HARRISON AND TYLER'S ADMINISTRATION- 184 1-1 845. 

The Log'-Cabin Campaig-n.— William Henry Harrison, of 
Ohio, was the Whig candidate for President. As he had 
been a pioneer in what was then the "far West," he was 
e:xaa^ represented as living in a log-cabin with 
the "latch string hung out; " and log- 
cabins on wheels, with coon-skins 
stretched on the sides of the cabins, and 
cider barrels near at hand, formed a 
part of every great Whig procession 
during the campaign. Songs about 
"Tippecanoe and Tyler, too," were 
sung at the meetings, and the people 
were wide-awake. General Harrison 
was elected by a large majority, was inaugurated on the 
4th of March, and died just a month later, leaving his 
place to Vice-President John Tyler. 

The Inauguration.— A piercing northeast wind blew and the sun was darkened 
by clouds on the daj' of Harrison's inauguration. His friends had presented a car- 
riagefor the occasion, which he declined, and rode to the Capitol on horseback, bare- 
headed, and without an overcoat, the crowds cheering themselves hoarse as his 
spirited white horse pranced along, followed by mechanics, representing their 
trades, and Tippecanoe clubs, with their log-cabins, coons, and cider-barrels. 

The throngs at the Capitol nearly perished from the icj^ blasts, while the Presi- 
dent, standing on the balcony, delivered his inaugural without hat, overcoat, or 
gloves. At the conclusion of his address he waved away the carriage and rode 
upon the charger, unprotected from the cold. These, and other indiscretions, 
brought on pneumonia. 

Death in the White House.— "On the 4th of April, there was death in the White 
House, where never before had trod his skeleton foot. The hero of Tippecanoe 
from the round at the top, had stepped to the sky. The hosts that had come be- 
fore to witness his triumph, came again to behold the funeral pomp." — From 
I.mly \V:ti,liiiiiiton to Mrs. Clrvehind, by Lydia L. Gordon. 




ANNEXATION OF TEXAS. 



187 




Annexation of Texas.— The chief event of Tyler's admin- 
istration was the annexation of Texas. Texas had been a 
province of Mexico, but the people had 
revolted, and, after a hard struggle, 
had gained their independence, and set 
up a government of their own. A num- 
ber of large colonies from the South- 
em States had gone to Texas, taking 
their slaves along ; and, though Mexico 
had before abolished slavery, it was 
established in the new republic. 

The Southern States had a strong 
desire to annex Texas, because it would open up an im- 
mense territory to slavery. John C. Calhoun, then the 
great pro-slavery leader, said the object of the measure 
w^as "to uphold the interests of slavery, extend its influ- 
ence, and secure its permanent duration." 

Feeling" in the Free States. — The people of the free 
states did not wish to see slavery extended and strength- 
ened, and many felt sure that annexation would lead to 
war with the Republic of Mexico, which had not yet fully 
given up its hope of re-conquering Texas. But, in s^Dite of 
all opposition, it was admitted to the Union (1845), Tyler 
approving the bill three days before he went out of office. 

Political Parties.— In the presidential election of 1844, 
James K. Polk, of Tennessee, was the candidate of the 
Democrats, Henry Clay of the Whigs, and James G. Bimey 
of the Liberty Part3\ Mr. Polk was favorable to the an- 
nexation of Texas, and was elected. 

The Liberty Party was formed (1S44) to bring about the abolition of slavery 
throughout the land. It was opposed to the annexation of Texas, and to all 
schemes for the extension of slavery ; and was joined by many men of wealth, 
talents, and personal w^orth. Mr. Bimey, its candidate for president, had been 
a slaveholder in Kentucky, but had given his slaves their freedom and moved to 
Michigan. The party polled quite a large number of votes. 



188 



THE TELEGRAPH. 



The Telegraph. — The magnetic telegraph came into use 
in 1844. The first Hne extended from Washington to Bal- 
timore, a distance of forty miles. The first message was, 
"What hath God wrought!" Other telegraphs had been 
in use, but they w^ere only long lines of signal posts set 
some distance apart, on which messages were sent by 
hoisting letters or signals. 

Prof. Samuel F. B. Morse, the inventor of the magnetic telegraph, had been 
at work on it for a number of years. Having no means, he went to Washing- 
ton, hoping to secure a grant from Congress (1838). Failing in this, he crossed 
the ocean to seek aid in Europe, but received no en- 
couragement there. Returning home disappointed, 
he rene\ved his efforts in Washington, spending ^vin- 
ter after winter, using all his influence — all his pow- 
ers of persuasion. 

" March the third, 1843,the last daj' of the session, 
was come. He attended all day the House of Repre 
sentatives, faintly hoping that something might be 
done for him before the final adjournment ; but as 
the evening wore away, the pressure and confusion 
increased, and at length hope died within him and he 
left the Capitol. He walked sadlj- home and went to 
bed. Imagine the rapture ^vith which he heard on 
the following morning that Congress, late in the 
night, had voted him thirty thousand dollars for constructing his experimental 
line! Eleven years and a half had passed since he had made his invention on 
board the ship. Perhaps, on that morning, he thought it worth while to strive 
and suffer so long a period, to enjoy the thrill and ecstacj- he then experienced." 
— Parton's Triumphs of Enterprise. 

New State. — Florida was admitted to the Union just at 
the close of T3'ler's administration (1845). 
Topics. — Tell what you can of — 

1. The log-cabin campaign. 

2. 'Inauguration of Harrison. 

3. Death in the White House. 
Annexation of Te.xas. 
The feeling in the Iree states 
Political parties. 
The Liberty Party. 
The magnetic telegraph. 
New state. 




ki SAMUEL. F. B. MOESE. 



4. 
5. 
6. 

7. 



POLK S ADMINISTRATION. 



189 



Chapter XXXVI. 




POLK'S ADMINISTRATION - 1 845- 1 849 . 

The Boundary Question.— The United States had claimed 
the region drained by the Columbia River because an Ameri- 
can sea captain discovered the mouth of that stream, and 
the country had been partially ex- 
plored by Lewis and Clarke's expedi- 
tion, sent out by the government in 
the time of Jefferson. {See map, page 
150.) 

Although a few Americans had set- 
tled there, the region w^as really sub- 
ject to the British fur companies, and 
no boundary line had been agreed on. 
A treaty was made (1846) which fixed 
the northern boundary of the United States at 49° north 
latitude, and, though the government had claimed as far 
north as 54° 40', there was great satisfaction at the peacea- 
ble settlement of a question which gave us over three hun- 
dred thousand square miles of territory. 

War with Mexico. — As many had feared, the United States 
soon found itself in trouble with Alexico. Texas claimed 
the Rio Grande as its western boundary, while Mexico 
fixed it at the river Nueces {nooa' sees), a hundred miles 
farther north. The government took sides with Texas, 
and sent General Taylor with a small army to occupy the 
disputed territory. Mexico sent a larger force, and soon 
there were skirmishes, and then the sharp battles of Palo 
Alto {pah' Jo ah r to) and Resaca de la Palma {ra sah' kah 



190 



Taylor's campaign 



da lah pahT mah) were fought, in \vhich the Americans 

were successful (May 8-9, 1846). 
Congress now declared that war existed between the two 

countries by act of Mexico; voted ten million dollars to 

carry it on; 
and resolved 
to call for fif- 
ty thousand 
volunteers. 
The call met 
with a quick 
response. 

One division 
of the army 
w^as placed in 
command of 
General Tay- 
lor, another 
under Gener- 
al Scott, and 
a third in 
command of 




General Philip H. Kearney (karne). 

Taylor's Campaig-n.— General Taylor now crossed the 
Rio Grande, and took possession of Matamoras. Receiving 
re-enforcements, he marched to the strongly fortified city of 
Monterey {mon ta ray'), which was garrisoned by ten thou- 
sand men. After a desperate struggle, the Mexicans were 
driven from their works, and the city was forced to capitu- 
late (September 24, 1846). 

General Santa Anna {sahn' tab ab' nah) , the best soldier 
of the Republic, then took command of the Mexican forces, 
numbering some twenty thousand men. General Taylor, 



NEW MEXICO AND CALIFORNIA TAKEN. 



191 



whose force was less than five thousand, took a strong 
position at Buena Vista {hwa' nah vees' tah), where he was 
attacked by Santa Anna, who was confident of an easy 
victory. But, after a hard struggle lasting from morning 
till night, the Mexicans were driven from the field in great 
confusion (February 23, 1847). 

New Mexico and California Taken.— General Kearney 
marched into New Mexico, and took possession of that 
state; and General Fremont with a mere handful of men, 
aided by Commodore Stockton with a naval force, brought 
California under the United States flag (1847). 

Scott's Campaig"n.— Though the Mexicans had lost every 
battle, they were not disposed to make peace, and General 
Scott was sent to carry war into the 
heart of the country. With a land force 
of twelve thousand men, and a fleet un- 
der Commodere Matthew C. Perry, the 
city of Vera Cruz {va^ rnh croos'), de- 
fended by the strong fortress of San 
Juan d'Ulloa {sahn hoo ahn' da ool yo' 
ah) was bombarded and forced to 
surrender (March 27, 1847). 

The army then began its march to 
the interior, gaining daring victories at Cerro Gordo {ser' 
rogor'do), Churubusco (choo roo boos' ko) , and at other 
places, until, at last, the City of Mexico, with its one hun- 
dred and forty thousand inhabitants, w^as compelled to 
yield to Scott's force, then numbering less than six thou- 
sand men (September 14, 1847). 

Results of the War.— This brought the war to a close, 
and a treaty of peace was signed, by which California and 
New Mexico were ceded to the United States, and the Rio 
Grande was made the boundary between the two countries 




192 THE WILMOT PROVISO. 

(February 2, 1848). The United States agreed to pay fif- 
teen million dollars for the territory acquired, and assume 
debts due American citizens from Mexico to the amount 
of three million dollars. 

The Gold Excitement.— People knew but little about the value of California, 
but, during the vcrj- year of the treaty, there eame rumors of the discovery of 
gold. A laborer at work on a mill-race belonging to Captain Sutter, found the 
glittering dust in the sand. In the East, men went wild over the discovery. 
Thousands set out for the gold field with ox-teams and covered wagons, and 
long trains were soon crossing the Western plains. Other thousands went by sea, 
crossing the Isthmus, and California was soon swarming with gold-seekers, and 
others who came to make fortunes in different ways. In two years San Fran- 
cisco grew from a village to a city of thirty-five thousand, and in three years 
California -was ready to come into the Union. 

The Wilmot Proviso.— The discussion in regard to slavery 
went on, the people became anxious to know whether 
the tei-ritor3^ acquired of Mexico was to be slave or free ; 
and David Wilmot, of Pennsylvania, introduced into Con- 
gress a measure, known as the Wilmot Proviso, prohibit- 
ing slavery in all the territory acquired of Mexico. Though 
the proviso was finally defeated, it led to a long discussion, 
and to the organization of the Free Soil party. 

The Free Soil Party, as its name indicates, was formed for the purpose of pre- 
venting the extension of slavery into the territories. It was made up of the Lib- 
erty party, and many men who left both the other parties. The first Free Soil 
party convention was held at Buffalo, New York (August 9, 1848). It was com- 
posed of delegates from all the free, and several of the slave states, and its can- 
didate, Martin Van Buren, received nearly three hundred thousand votes. 

Woman's Rights. — The first woman's rights convention was held at Seneca 
Falls, New York, on the 19th and 20th of July, 1848. The chief managers were 
Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Mary Ann McClintock, Jane Hunt, and 
Martha C. Wright. A "Declaration of Rights" was framed, based on the prin- 
ciple that, "Governments derive their just powers from the consent of the gov- 
erned." It was argued that women should have a voice in making the laws 
under which they live; that they should not be taxed without representation; 
that they should be allowed to control their own earnings ; that all schools and 
colleges should be open to them ; that they should be permitted to enter any 
profession, to follow any honorable calling for which nature has fitted them — 
each to judge for herself 

The journals all over the land sought to make the movement ridiculous, but 
the battle has been kept up from that day to this, the cause seeming to gain 



INVENTIONS. 193 

strength every year. Women are now admitted to most of the higher institu- 
tions of learning on equal terms with men ; they are preaching the gospel, prac- 
ticing law and medicine, and earning their daily bread in hundreds of ways not 
open to them fortj' years ago. Besides this, many oppressive laws have been re- 
pealed, and in several of the states and territories the right of suffrage has been 
partially extended to them. 

Inventions, — One of the most important of the many inventions of that ,pe- 
riod was the sewing machine, for which a patent w^as issued to Elias Howe, of 
Massachusetts (1846). A year later, R. M. Hoe, of New^ York, brought out his 
cylinder printing-press which made it possible to print enormous editions of news- 
papers. As now improved, it will print seventy thousand copies of a four-page 
paper in an hour, folding them besides. 

New States.— Three statess were admitted to the Union 
during Polk's administration. They were Texas (1845), 
Iowa (1846), and Wisconsin (1848). 



Topics.— Tell about — 


1. 


The boundary question. 


2. 


War with Mexico. 


3. 


Taylor's campaign. 


4. 


New Mexico and California. 


5. 


Scott's campaign. 


6. 


Results of the war. 


7. 


The gold excitement. 


8. 


The Wilmot Proviso. 


9. 


The Free Soil jjarty. 


10. 


Woman's rights. 


11. 


Two inventionso 


12. 


New states. 



194 



TAYLOR AND FILLMORE'S ADMINISTRATION. 



Chapter XXXVII. 

TAYLOR AND FILLMORE'S ADMINISTRATION- 1849-1853. 

Death of Taylor.— In the campaign of 1848, Martin Van 
Buren was nominated by the Free Soil party, Lewis Cass 
by the Democrats, 
and Zachary Tay- 
tj lor by the Whigs. <| 
Taylor was elected, v 
but lived onh' a A-ear 
after his inaugura- 
^ tion, and Vice-Presi- 
dent Fillmore be- 
^ came President for 
the rest of the term. 
The Compromises of 1850. — To settle the question of sla- 
vers^, the discussion of which had become very bitter, in 
Congress and out, Henry Clay, who was then a member 
of Congress, intro- 
duced what were 
called compromise 

measures. The peo- n 

s 

^ pie of the North were ;> 

S to be quieted by the > 

N admission of Call- [; 

^ fomiaasafreestate, s 

and by the abolition 







■LT-z^ y J" y^ y 



of the slave trade in 
the District of Columbia. The people of the South were to 
have a " Fugitive Slave Law," allowing slaveholders to re- 
capture their slaves anywhere in the free states, and take 



THE FUGTIYE SLAVE LAW. 



195 



Charles Sumner ^vas born in Bos- 
ton, June 6, 1811 ; died March 11, 
1874. He ^vas graduated at Har- 
vard College in 1830; and soon 
became editor of the American 
Jurist, a law magazine of high 
standing. He also wrote and pub- 
lished man J- legal volumes of great 
excellence; and delivered many 
ptiblic addresses which gave him a 
wide fame as an orator. He took 
strong grounds in favor of settling 
all difficulties between nations by 
arbitration instead of the s^vord. 
His first public opposition to 
slavery was in 18-t5, \vhen he op- 
posed the annexation of Texas be- 
cause he believed it was intended 
to extend the boundaries of that 
system of labor. From that tiine 
until his death, Sumner always ad- 
vocated the emancipation of the 
slaves. He becaine United States 
Senator in 1S51, and retained his 
seat in that bodj' until his death. 

Sumner was the leader of all 
anti-slaverj- movements in the Sen- 
ate, takingthe ground that, " Free- 
dom is national, slavery is sec- 
tional." His great speech upon 
"The crime against Kansas" re- 
quired two days for its deliver^'. 
Some passages in it greatly of- 
fended members of Congress from 
the South, and one of them, Pres- 
ton S. Brooks, of South Carolina, 
approached Mr. Sumner while 
writing at his desk in the Senate 
chamber, and dealt him such a blow 
on the head with a cane, that he 
fell insensible upon the floor. Mr. 
Sumner suffered much from this 
blow, and did not fully recover 
from it for several years, if at all. 
Brooks' constituents presented 
him with a gold-headed cane, and 
re-elected him to Congress. Mr. 
Sumner sustained the national pol- 
icy during the war, and in 1865 
pronounced a eulogy on Abraham 
Lincoln. 



them back to bondage with- 
out a trial by jury. These meas- 
ures were supported by Daniel 
Webster and other leading 
Northern statesmen, and were 
passed by Congress. 

The Fug-itive Slave Law.— 
Great excitement follo\ved, 
and the Fugitive Slave Law 
was denounced bj^ Charles 
Sumner, Horace Mann, Wen- 
dell Phillips, and many other 
prominent men of the North ; 
and in several of the states 
acts were passed to prevent 
the enforcement of the law, 
or, at least, to secure a jury 
trial for all persons claimed 
as slaves. 

Fugitives Rescued. — in some cases the 
people rescued fugitive slaves from the 
hands of the officers. This was done in 
Syracuse, New York, and in Boston. In 
Ohio, Margaret Gamer, a fugitive, killed 
her two children to save them from sla- 
verj'. 

Uncle Tom's Cabin, — About this time 
Harriet Beecher Stowe published a book. 
Uncle Tom's Cabin, which gave a vivid 
picture of slave life in the South. It was 
widely read by young and old, and 
touched the hearts of all, causing deep 
sympathy for the slave. No book on the 
subject of slaverj^ has ever had so great 
an influence. 

The Underground Railroad. — For many 
years the slaves of the South fled to the 
Northern States orto Canadaforfreedom. 
They left their masters, and sometimes 



196 



PIERCE S ADMINISTRATION. 



traveled hundreds of miles, hiding in swamps and other out-of-the-waj- places by 
daj', and journe^'ing by night, until the border of a free state was reached. They 
were then secreted in the garret or cellar of some friend, black or white, and at 
night were carried in a wagon ten or twenty miles to another friend who would 
hide the waj-farers, and carry them on the next night. In this way Canada, or 
some other place of safety, was reached at last. It was said that these fugi- 
tives traveled on the " Underground Railroad." There -^vere many such lines 
stretching across the country, and some of the most noted agents or conductors 
placed thousands of black men and \vomen aboard the secret trains. 

Topics.— Tell about— 

1. Death of Taylor. 

2. The compromises of 1850. 

3. The Fugitive Slave Law. 

4. Uncle Tom's Cabin. 

5. The Undersrround Railroad. 



Chapter XXXVIII. 



PIERCE'S ADMINISTRATION- 1853-1857. 

The Free Soil partj^ weakened the Whig partj' b3^ draw- 
ing voters from its ranks, and Franklin Pierce, of New 
Hampshire, a Democrat, became the 
next President. 

The Kansas -Nebraska Bill.— The 
compromise measures had failed to set- 
tle the slaverv' question, and Stephen 
A. Douglas, of Illinois, brought a bill 
before Congress to organize the terri- 
tories of Kansas and Nebraska. These 
territories lay north of the Missouri 
Compromise line of 1820, and so sla- 
very was to be forever excluded from them. Mr. Douglas' 
bill set aside this agreement, and allowed the settlers to de- 
cide whether the territories should come in as free, or as 
slave states. This plan went by the name of "Squatter 
Sovereignt}'." 




Buchanan's administration. 197 

The measure was stoutly resisted on the floor of Congress and by the oppo- 
nents of slavery in the North, but it became a law, and people from all parts 
of the country rushed to Kansas, those from the North hoping to make it a free 
state, those from the South determined to make it a slave state. 

Civil War in Kansas. — The settlers from the North gen- 
erally took their families, expecting to make permanent 
homes ; but many from the slave states went simplj^ to aid 
in establishing slavery. "Border Ruffians," as they were 
called, swept over from Missouri to vote at elections, and 
to commit depredations on free-state settlers, who were 
obliged to protect their families and defend their rights 
with powder and ball. 

Two separate governments were formed by settlers, and 
a desperate struggle followed, in which the homes of many 
settlers were destroyed and many lives were lost. 

John Brown. — Among the free-state leaders. Captain John Brown, of Ossawat- 
tomie, took a most active and daring part. With sixteen men he defended him- 
self against several hundred marauders from Missouri, killing and wounding a 
large number, with a loss of but two of his own little force. 

Topics.— Tell about— 

1. The Kansas-Nebraska bill 

2. Civil war in Kansas. 

3. John Brown. 



Chapter XXXIX. 

BUCHANAN'S ADMINISTRATION - 1 857- 1861. 

Political Parties.— The Free Soil party had taken a new 
name — Republican. Most of the Southern Whigs had 
joined the Democrats, while the Northern Whigs had gone 
to the Republicans, and there was no longer a Whig party. 
The Republicans nominated John C. Fremont, the Path- 
finder; the Democrats, James Buchanan, and a new party, 
called the Native American, or "Know-Nothing" party, 



198 



JOHN BROWN S RAID. 




put Up Millard Fillmore. The Democrats were successful 
in the election. 

The Dred Scott Decision.— The very year that Buchanan 
took his seat, Judge Tanej^ {taw ny), of the Supreme Court, 
gave what was called the Dred Scott decision. Dred Scott, 
a slave who was taken by his mas- 
ter to reside at Fort Snelling, Minne- 
sota, sued for his freedom, on the 
ground that his master had taken him 
to free territor\^ In substance, the 
court decided tnat Africans Avhose 
parents had been slaves had no rights 
under the Constitution, and that a 
master could take his slaves, the same 
as his horses or cattle, into a free state 
without losing his right to hold them. It also decided that 
Congress had no power to forbid slavery in the territo- 
ries. The Republicans saw that this decision made slavery 
national, instead of local, and the excitement increased. 

John Brown's Raid. — John Brown, familiarly known as 
" Ossawattomie Brown," a descendant of a Puritan family, 
who was brouglit up to hate slavery, wished to help the 
slaves to gain their freedom. With twenty associates he 
seized the United States Arsenal, at Harper's Ferry, in the 
mountains of Virginia, in order to secure arms for the 
slaves, who he thought would rally at his call (October 
16, 1859). The news of this raid was telegraphed to all 
parts of the Union, and great excitement prevailed. Troops 
were sent against Brown's handful of men, thirteen of 
whom were killed, two escaped, and the rest, including 
Brown, were tried for treason. Brown was condemned to 
death, and hanged (December 2, 1859), his last act being to 
kiss a little slave child when on his way to the gallows. 



THE GREAT QUESTION. 



199 



By the census of 1860, the population of the United States was 31,443,321, 
an increase of over 8,000,000 in ten years. It had outstripped Great Britain and 
Ireland in the number of its inhabitants; its railroads had a length of 31,000 
miles; and in merchant vessels it ranked next to Great Britain. No other coun- 
try on the globe approached it in agriculture. The South had produced 5,000,- 
000 bales of cotton of 400 poiinds each in a single year. Yet this was the country 
of which an explorer said, 260 years before, "Nothing but sassafras and a few 
half-naked Indians can be fovmd." 




EAELY HOME OF ABK.\HAM LINCOLN, GENTRYVILLE, INDIA.NA. 

The Great Question.— Slavery was the great question in 
the next presidential campaign. It caused a division of 
the Democratic party, and John C. Breckenridge v^ras nomi- 
nated by the Southern Democrats, who claimed that 
neither the people nor Congress had any right to prohibit 
slavery in the territories. The Northern Democrats, who 
held that the inhabitants of a territory ought to decide 



200 



SECESSION OF SOUTHERN STATES. 



whether it should come in as 
a free, or as a slave state, chose 
Stephen A. Douglas, the au- 
thor of the Kansas-Nebraska 
bill, as their leader. The Re- 
publicans, who were deter- 
mined to prevent the spread 
of slavery, made Abraham 
Lincoln their standard bearer ; 
and the small Native Ameri- 
can party voted for John Bell. 
Mr. Lincoln carried every 
Northern state, save New Jer- 
sey, and Avas elected. 

Secession of Southern 
States. — While Mr. Lincoln 
did not propose to interfere 
with slavery where it already 
existed, many people of the 
South looked upon his election 
as dangerous to the interests 
of slavery, and a movement 
was made to dissolve the 
Union. The belief that any 
state could leave the Union 
when it chose to do so, had 
long been held at the South. 
This was in accordance with 
what is known as State 
Rights, or State Sovereignty, 
so strongly advocated by Cal- 
houn. 



Abraham Lincoln was bom in a 
log-cabin in Hardin County, Ken- 
tucky, February 12, 1809. His 
father was very poor, a common 
laborer, unable to read or ^vritc. 
His mother died when he was ten 
years old, but she had tau^'ht him 
to read and write, and had man- 
aged to give him six months of 
schooling, — all that he ever had. 
"All that I am, or hope to be, I 
owe to my angel mother; blessings 
on her memory," were the words 
of her dutiful son, uttered when he 
was President. Lincoln went with 
his parents to Indiana, where the 
familj' lived for twelve j'cars, and 
thence to Illinois. He worked as a 
farm-hand, a wood-chopper, a rail- 
splitter, a flat-boatman at "ten 
dollars a month and found." 

At twentj--one, Lincoln left his 
father's house, and went forth to 
seek his fortune in the world. He 
worked as a hired laborer, glad of 
any honest employment, but he 
was determined to have an educa- 
tion, and spent half the night and 
every spare moment of the day in 
reading such useful books as could 
be found in those times in a new, 
thinly settled country. At twentj'- 
five he had mastered English gram, 
mar, and was a read}' speaker ; and 
by hard work afterwards fitted 
himself for the practice of law. He 
was elected to the legislature of 
Illinois, and also to the lower 
house of Congress, and was nomi- 
nated by the Republicans for t'le 
Ignited States Senate against 
Stephen A. Douglas, who barely 
escaped defeat in that Democratic 
state. During the presidential 
campaign his enemies spoke of him 
as a rail-splitter, and the people of 
the South were told that he was a 
mulatto. Alore will be learned of 
this remarkable man in the lessons 
that follow. 



In December (18G0) South Carolina passed an ordinance 



CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA. 



201 



of secession, declaring herself out of the Union; and Ala« 
bama, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas 




--m 



THE 

SECEDING 
STATES. 



soon followed. They took the forts, navy yards, arsenals, 

and other property of the United States within their borders. 

Confederate States of America.— The next move of these 

seven states was to 

form a government 

under the name, 

' 'Confederate States 

of America." A 

constitution was 

adopted, much like 
N that of the United s| 

States,' save that !»{ 

it declared slavery 
right and permanent. Jefferson Davis was chosen Presi- 
dent, Alexander H. Stephens, Vice-President, and the seat 
of government was established at Montgomery, Alabama. 





202 WHAT BUCHANAN THOUGHT. 

What Buchanan Thoug-ht.— President Buchanan did not 
think it right for states to leave the Union, but he thought 
he had no authority to compel them to stay in, and the 
government did nothing to preserve the Union. 

New States. — Minnesota (1858), Oregon (1859), and 
Kansas (1861) became members of the Union. 

THE STEPS OF DOOM. 

We prayed and hoped; but still, -vvitli awe, 

The coming of the sword we saw ; 

We heard the nearing steps of doom, 

We saw the shade of things to come. 

In grief, which they alone can feel 

Who from a mother's wrong appeal, 

With blended lines of fear and hope 

We cast our country's horoscope. 

For still within her house of life. 

We marked the lurid sign of strife, 

And, poisoning and embittering all, 

We saw the star of worm-wood fall. — Wbittier. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. Political parties. 

2. The Dred Scott decision. 

3. John Brown's raid. 

4. The great question. 

5. Secession of Southern States. 

6. Confederate States of America. 

7. What Buchanan thought. 

8. New states. 



TEST EXERCISES. 



203 



TOPICS FOR REVIEW. 

Historic Names.— Tell what you can of the persons whose names are 
Sfiven below : 



Washin^on, 130 - 135, 

141 145. 
Jefferson, lil.'-1.8-'51, '73 
Hamilton, 141-2. 
Henry Knox, 141. / 

Edwin Randolph, 141. 
John Jay, 141. 
Samue! Adams, 143. 
John Adams, 131,146-7, 
Eli Whitnev, 145. 
Lieut. Decatur, 149, 156. 
Lewis and Clarke, 151. 
Robert Fulton, 152-3. 
James Madison, 153,54. 
Gen. Harrison, 154,157, 
Tecumseh, 154, 157. [186 
General Hull, 155. 
Isaac Hull, 155. 
Oliver H. Perry, 157. 
Jackson, 158,174-182. 
Gen. Scott, 158, 191. 
Macdonough, 158. 
Francis S. Key, 159. 
F. Cabot Lowell, 161. 



Paul Moody, 161. 
Calhoun, 162,'75'6,'84'7 
James Monroe, 166-169. 
J. Q. Adams, 166, 171, '4. 
Clay, 168-9, 187, 194. 
La Favette, 170. 
De Witt CHnton, 172. 
Garrison, 178-'79, 184. 
Wendell Phillips,179,195 
Fred 'ck Douglass, 178-'9. 
Whittier, 179. 
Irving, 181. 
Brvant, 181. 
Poe, 181. 
Longfellow, 181. 
Bancroft, 181. 
Emerson, 181. 
Holmes, 156, 181. 
Hawthorne, 181. 
Prescott, 181. 
VanBuren, 183. 
Elijah P. Lovejoy, 185. 
Lewis Tappan, 185. 
John Tyler, 186. 



James G. Bimev, 187. 
Samuel F. B. Morse, 188. 
Jas. K. Polk, 187,189, 
Z. Taylor, 189-'90,'94. 
Santa Anna, 190. 
Gen. Kearnev, 190-191. 
J. C. Fremont, 191,197. 
David Wilmot, 192. 
Elias Howe, 193. 
E. M. Hoe, 193. 
Millard Fillmore, 194. 
Daniel Webster, 184,195. 
Charles Sumner, 195. 
Harriet B. Stowe, 195. 
Franklin Pierce, 196. 
S. A. Douglas, 196,200. 
John Brown, 197,198. 
Jas. Buchanan, 197, 200. 
Judge Taney, 198. 
John C.Breckenridge,199 
John Bell, 200. 
Abraham Lincoln, 200. 
Jefferson Davis, 201. 
Alex. H. Stephens, 201. 



Historic Places.— Locate the places named, and tell what you can of 
the events with which the3' were connected: 



Federal Hall, 131. '2. 
Tippecanoe, 154. 
Detroit, 155. 
Lake Erie, 157. 
Thames River, 157. 
Lundv's Lane, 158. 
Plattsburgh, 158. 



Washington City, 159. 
Baltimore, 159. 
New Orleans, 160, 165. 
Ghent, 160. 
Lowell, 161. 
Monterey, 190. 
Buena Vista, 191. 



Vera Cruz, 191. 
Cerro Gordo, 191. 
Churubusco, 191. 
Mexico, 191. 
Harper's Ferry, 198. 



General Topics.— Tell what you can of the following: 

Chapter XXIV.— Articles of Confederation— the Constitution. XXV. 
—The new Republic and its people. XXVI.— Washington's administration. 
XXVIL— John Adam's administration. XXVIII.— Jefferson's administra- 
tion. XXIX.— Madison's administration. XXX.— Settling the great val- 
vallev. XXXI.— Monroe's administration. XXXIL— J. Q. Adams' ad- 
ministration. XXXIII.— Jackson's administration. XXXIV.— Van Buren's 
administration. XXXV.— Harrison and T^vler's administration. XXXVI. 
Polk's administration. XXXVII. Taylor and Fillmore's administration. 
XXXVIIL— Pierce's administration. "XXXIX.— Buchanan's administra- 
tion. 








^M 



Q^y/TS^^-^-^-^-ij-^^ 



THE WAR FOR THE UNION. 205 



PART FIFTH. 
THE WAR FOR THE UNION. 



Chapter XL. 

LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION - 1 86 1-1865. 

Thou, too, sail on, O Ship of State ! 

Sail on, O Union, strong and great! 

Humanity with all its fears, 

With all the hopes of future years. 

Is hanging breathless on thy fate ! 

We know what master laid thy keel, 

What workman wrought thy ribs of steel, 

Who made each mast, and sail, and rope, 

What anvils rang, what hammers beat, 

In what a forge and what a heat 

Were shaped the anchors of thy hope! — Longfellow. 

Great Anxiety of the Country.— The country awaited 
the inauguration of Lincoln with great anxiety. Seven 
states had already seceded and others were threatening to 
do so. Forts, arsenals, navy yards, and custom houses 
had been taken, and nothing was held by the government 
in the states which had seceded except Fort Pickens near 
Pensacola, Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor, and the 
forts at the southern extremity of Florida. President Bu- 
chanan had really done nothing to save the Union, and all 
attempts at compromise had failed. Most people of the 
North thought that a state could not leave the Union, but 
there was a difference of opinion as to wdiat should be 
done. Some would use force to bring the states back, 
while others thought it best to let them depart in peace. 



206 FIRING OX FORT SUMTER. 

Lincoln's Inaug-ural Address. — As a disturbance was 
feared, Lincoln was inaugurated in presence of a military 
force under command of General Scott. The inaugural ad- 
dress was mild but firm. The people were told that the 
government had no intention of interfering with slavery 
where it already existed, but they were also made to un- 
derstand that the laws would be enforced, and the prop- 
erty of the United States recovered and protected. 

Mr. Lincoln said, "In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow 
countrj'men, is the momentous issue of civil war. The 
government will not assail you. You can have no conflict 
without being j^ourselves the aggressors. You have no 
oath in Heaven to destroy the government ; while I shall 
have the most solemn one to ' preserve, protect, and defend 
it.'" The closing paragraph of the inaugural address is as 
follows: "I am loath to close. We are not enemies, but 
friends. We must not be enemies. Though passions may 
have strained, they must not break our bonds of affection. 
The mystic chords of memor}-, stretching from ever\' battle- 
field and patriot grave, to every living heart and hearth- 
stone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus 
of the Union, when again touched, as surely the}' will be, 
by the better angels of our nature." 

Firing" on Fort Sumter. — These kind words had no effect 
on the Southern leaders. W^hile President Buchanan had 
been doubting and debating, the Confederates had erected 
batteries and gathered a force at Charleston, under General 
Beauregard {bo' re gard), for the purpose of attacking Fort 
Sumter. In the gray of the morning of the 12th of April, 
1861, the first shot was fired. The fort was garrisoned by 
seventy men, with Major Robert Anderson in command. 
For thirty-four hours shot and shell rained upon them from 
the batteries. The main gates of the fort were destroyed, 



THE COUNTRY ROUSED. 207 

the magazine was surrounded by flames, the ammunition 
was nearly spent, and no food but pork remained, when 
Major Anderson surrendered. 

The Country Roused.— No one can imagine the excite- 
ment that prevailed when the people of the North saw in 
their morning papers that the national flag had been fired 
upon, and that Fort Sumter had surrendered. There was 
no longer any hope of peace, and both sides began to pre- 
pare for \var. The President called for seventy-five thou- 
sand volunteers, and three htnidred thousand responded. 

" From prairie, O ploughman ! speed boldly awaj', 
There's seed to be so^vn in God's furrows to-day; 
Ro^v landward, lone fisher; stout woodman, come home; 
Let the smith leave his anvil, and weaver his loom ; 
Let hamlet and citj^ ring loud \vith the cry. 
For God and our country we'll fight till w^e die ! 
Here's welcome to wounding and conflict and scars. 
And the glory of death for the stripes and the stars ! " 

Everywhere in the South there was rejoicing over the 
victory.* Virginia, North Carolina, Arkansas, and Tennes- 
see made haste to cast their fortunes with the Confederacy. 
Virginia seized the navy-\^ard at Norfolk, and the arsenal 
at Harper's Ferry, with all their militarj^ stores, and South- 
ern volunteers poured in from all directions. 

Getting Ready for War. — in the North preparations for war were seen on 
every hand. The volunteers had to be taught how to use the musket and other 
weapons, how to march, how to pitch tents, and how to fight battles. Regi- 
ments were organized and drilled bj' the governors of the different states ; but 
the material of war had to be provided by the government. 

Buchanan's Secretary of War, Floyd, had sent thousands of muskets, and also 
cannon and ammunition, to arsenals in the South. As these supplies were now 
in the hands of the Confederates, the government had much to do. Arms, uni- 
forms, tents, arm5'- wagons, and ambulances had to be made, and horses, pro- 
visions, and medicines provided. 

The Blockade. — Immediately after President Lincoln's 
call for volunteers, Jefferson Davis issued a proclamation 
authorizing privateers to prey upon the commerce of the 



208 



THE BATTLE OF BULL RUN. 



United States. President Lincoln also issued a proclama- 
tion (April 19, 1861), declaring a blockade of Southern 
ports, and forbidding vessels to enter or leave them, 

Massachusetts Troops in Baltimore.— On the I9th of April, as the Sixth Regi- 
ment of Massachusetts troops was passing through Baltimore, on its way to 
Washington, it \Yas 
attacked by a mob 
led by a man with a 
secession flag on a 
pole. The man told 
the troops thej- shoxUd 
never go through the 
city — that every one 
of them would be 
killed before the next 
station could be 
reached. The air was 
filled with stones and 
other missiles hurled 
by the rioters, and 
several soldiers were 
knocked down and 
their muskets taken 
from them. 

The mob increased to full ten thousand, and there was lusty shouting for 
"JefF Davis and the Southern Confederacj'." Heavy pieces of iron were thrown 
upon the soldiers from the windows, and one of them crushed a man to the earth. 
Now the troops fired upon the mob. "Shouts, stones, musketrj', shrieks of 
women, and the carrj-ing of wounded men into the stores, made an appalling 
tragedy." At a little past noon the troops entered the cars for Washington. 
Three of their number had been killed, one mortally wounded, and others seri- 
ously injured. This was on the anniversary of the battle of Lexington. 

Union Forces Cross the Potomac— Late in May, Union 
forces were sent across the Potomac for the protection of 
Washington ; they occupied Arlington Heights and Alexan- 
dria, and by the end of the month not less than fifty thou- 
sand men held the line of the Potomac, or guarded the 
approaches to the capital. 

Western Virginia had many loj^al people who refused to 
sanction the ordinance of secession, and Confederate troops 
were sent to occupy that portion of the state. They were 




CONFEDERATE FLAG. 



EFFECT OF BULL RUN. 



209 



defeated in several battles by small Union forces, in com- 
mand of Generals McClellan and Rosecrans. West Virginia 
thus saved to the Union, afterwards became a separate 
state. There v^as also an engagement at Big Bethel, in 
Eastern Virginia, in which the Union troops were defeated. 

Battle of Bull Run. — The first general battle of the war 
took place at Bull Run (July 21, 1861). General Scott 
had ordered an advance of the Union forces towards Rich- 
mond, which had become the Confederate capital, and Gen- 
eral Irvin McDowell, with thirty thousand men, marched 
out to attack the Confederate army, under General Beau- 
regard, v^hich stretched along a small stream called Bull 
Run. At first, the advantage was on the Union side, and 
before noon news of a Union victory was telegraphed all 
over the North. But both sides fought desperately, and 
"Now a battery was captured from the enemy, and now 
a regiment of Union troops w^ent into the battle and was 
cut to pieces." Later in the day fresh recruits pressed 
heavily upon the Union forces, and the weary men lost all 
hope. Panic then seized on one regiment after another, and 
the Union army was soon fljnng in wild haste towards 
Washington, leaving the road strewed 
with arms, and everything else that 
could hinder flight. 

Effect of Bull Run.— It was a sad 
day when the news of this defeat spread 
over the North, but courage soon re- 
vived. Congress, then in special ses- 
sion, voted to raise five hundred thou- 
sand men and to appropriate five hun- 
dred million dollars to carry on the 
w^ar. General Scott, who was becoming old and infirm, 
retired, and General George B. McClellan was made Com- 





u '' 'il» ,%^^lsk 



■JKt 




THE FIRST BATTL 




" BULL RUN 



212 THE WAR ON THE COAST. 

mander-in-Chief. He spent several months in training the 
raw volunteers that poured in from all parts of the North, 
and the people became very impatient of what seemed to 
them a needless delay. 

Ball's Bluff. — Later in the season there w^as a sharp en- 
gagement at Ball's Bluff, a ^Doint on the Potomac above 
Washington, in which a Union force of two thousand men 
was surprised by a body of Confederates, and badly de- 
feated. Among the killed was Senator Baker, of Oregon, 
who had become a general. Though the war in Eastern 
Virginia w^as discouraging to the North, it roused the peo- 
ple to a stronger effort. 

The War in Missouri.— The secessionists of Missouri, en- 
couraged by the governor, made a strong effort to take 
the state out of the Union. The Union forces were in com- 
mand of General Nathaniel Lj'on, a brave soldier, who 
soon had the central and northern part of the state under 
control. But the Confederates rallied in the south, where, 
in the hard-fought battle of Wilson's Creek, L3'on w^as de- 
feated and killed (August 10). John C. Fremont was then 
placed in command ; but he was removed before a battle 
took place, and General Henry W. Halleck placed at the 
head. No great battle was fought, but the enemj'- w^as 
gradually driven out, and Missouri remained a loyal state. 

The War on the Coast.— When the war broke out the 
government had but four ships, and less than three hun- 
dred sailors ready for service ; but it soon fitted out a large 
number of vessels, most of which were used to blockade 
Southern ports. Two expeditions were sent South, one of 
which captured the forts at Hatteras Inlet, North Caro- 
lina; the other took the forts at Port Royal Entrance, 
South Carolina. These were very important victories, as 
they compelled the Confederates to abandon most of the 



CONDUCT OF ENGLAND. 213 

South Atlantic coast, and the ports they had seized were 
never regained by them. 

Effect of the Blockade.— The people of the South had 
few manufactories, and as they depended upon Europe and 
the North for all kinds of manufactured goods, and for a 
market for their cotton, rice, tobacco, and other products, 
they were sorely pressed by the blockade, and all kinds of 
cloths, tea, coffee, spices, and many other articles became 
very scarce and high. 

Towards the close of the war the blockade of Southern ports became so close, 
and the paper money of the South so reduced in value that a writer saj'S, "I 
bought coffee at forty dollars and tea at thirty dollars a pound on the same 
day. My dinner -at a hotel cost me twenty dollars, and for some wretched tal- 
low candles I paid ten dollars a pound. * * * A cavalry officer, entering 
a little country store, found there one pair of boots which fitted him. He in- 
quired the price. 'Two hundred dollars,' said the merchant. A five hundred dol- 
lar bill was offered, but the merchant, having no smaller bills, could not change 
it. 'Never mind,' said the cavalier, 'I'll take the boots anyhow. Keep the 
change; I never let a little matter of three hundred dollars stand in the way of 
a trade.'" — E^gleston's Rebel Recollections. 

Conduct of Eng-land.— England could get no cotton for 
her factories, and many of her operatives were out of 
work. Hence, if a ship-owner could run the blockade, land 
a cargo of goods in a Southern port, and take a cargo of 
cotton out, he would make a large sum of mone3'. In this 
hope of gain foreigners fitted out fast-sailing steamers for 
blockade running, \vhich entered the ports in the darkness 
of night, and though large numbers were captured by our 
Avatchful sailors, a great many escaped. In this way the 
South procured clothing, powder, muskets, and other 
needed things, and was enabled to prolong the war. Of 
about twelve hundred blockade runners captured during 
the war, seven hundred had sailed from British ports. 

Privateers were also fitted out by the Confederates, to 
prey upon our commerce, and these found safety in English 
ports, where some of them were refitted and put in order 



MOVEMENTS 

OF THK 

ARMY OF THE POTOMAC. 

Scale of Miles 



20 30 40 

"cUMBEtlLAND . 

</ <^ ^ %-^ *.. 

^<- O >^ 

« WINCHJESTE 




(21t.) 



PLAN OF THE WAR. 215 

for more effective work. England recognized the seceding 
states as belligerents ; France and Spain followed her ex- 
ample, and the Confederates were sustained throughout 
the war by the hope of aid from foreign powers. 

Capture of JVIason and Slidell. — As the Confederacj' was very desirous of being 
recognized by foreign nations, Air. Mason and Mr. Slidell were sent as commis- 
sioners to London and Paris. Thej' ran the blockade to Havana, and there took 
passage on the English mail steamer Trent. When out of port, Captain Wilkes, 
of the United States war vessel, San Jacinto, took Mason and Slidell from the 
steamer and carried them off (NoA-ember, 1861). Although the right to search 
neutral vessels had alwaj^s been claimed by England, this act produced great 
excitement in that country, and for a time there seemed a probability of war. 
The United States had alwaj's opposed "the right of search," and gave up the 
commissioners ta Great Britain, thus maintaining its own principles. 

Plan of the War.— Before the close of the year (1861) 
a plan had been formed for carrying on the war. Rich- 
mond was to be captured ; the Southern ports were to 
be thoroughh^ blockaded ; and the Mississippi was to be 
opened to the sea, dividing the Confederacy into two parts. 

Topics.— Tell about— 

1. Great anxiety of the country. 

2. Lincoln's inaugural address. 

3. Firing on Fort Sumter. 

4. The country roused. 

5. Getting ready for war. 

6. The blockade. 

7. Massachusetts troops in Baltimore. 

8. Union forces crossing the Potomac. 

9. Western Virginia. 

10. Battle of Bull Run. 

11. Effect of Bull Run. 

12. Ball's Bluff. 

13. The war in Alissouri. 

14. The w^ar on the coast. 

15. Effects of the blockade. 

16. Conduct of England. 

17. Privateers. 

18. Capture of Mason and Slidell. 

19. Plan of the war. 




CS16) 



CAMPAIGN IN THE WEST. 



217 



Chapter XLI. 



EVENTS OF 1862. 




Men in Arms.— At the beginning of 1862 the entire 
Union armj- nnmbered more than a half milHon men, most 
of ^vhom Avere volunteers. They were 
placed in several divisions to carry out 
the plan proposed. 

Capture of Forts Henry and Donel- 
son. — In February, General Uhsses S. 
Grant with a strong land force, aided 
by a fleet of gunboats under Com- 
modore Foote, captured Fort Henry 
on the Tennessee River, and Fort Don- 
elson on the Cumberland, taking ten 
thousand prisoners, with cannon and other military stores. 
These victories caused the evacuation of Nashville, the capi- 
tal of Tennessee, and Columbus on the Mississippi, and 
gave all of Kentucky and most of Ten- 
nessee to the Union forces. 

Battle of Shiloh.— General Grant then 
marched up the Tennessee to a place 
called Shiloh, or Pittsburgh Landing, 
where, on the morning of April 6th, 
he was suddenly attacked by a large 
force in command of General A. S. John- 
ston and General Beauregard. All day 
the battle raged with great slaughter, 
and had it not been for the gunboats the Union forces must 
have surrendered. Just at night, General D. C. Buell, with 





(218) 



CAPTURE OF NEW ORLEANS. 219 

a large force, came to Grant's aid, and the next morning 
the Confederates were slowly driven back, and retreated 
southward. This was the first great battle of the war. 
More than, twenty thousand men fell, killed and wounded, 
during the two days' fight. 

Capture of New Orleans.— Early in April, Admiral Far- 
ragut and General Butler, with a squadron of forty-five 
vessels, entered the mouth of the Mississippi for the purpose 
of capturing New Orleans, the metropolis of the South. 
The city was defended by Forts Jackson and St. Philip, 
seventy-five miles below ; and a chain "was stretched across 
the river near the forts. The Confederates had also sev- 
eral rafts filled with inflammable material, thirteen gun- 
boats, a floating battery, and an iron ram. 

For six days and nights the fleet bombarded the forts 
with but little effect, though the cannonading was so se- 
vere that windows in buildings miles away were broken 
by the concussion of the air, and fish in the river were 
stunned, and lay floating on the water. 

Farragut then ran past the forts, receiving a terrible fire 
of shot and shell. After a desperate struggle, he destroyed 
the Confederate flotilla, and succeeded in reaching the city. 
The forts surrendered a few da^^s later, and on the first of 
May General Butler with a land force took possession of 
the city. 

Vicksburg and Port Hudson were the only strongly for- 
tified places still held by the Confederates on the Missis- 
sippi, but so long as these were in their hands they could 
obtain beef and other suppnes from the West, and the Con- 
federacy' would remain undivided. 

Operations on the Coast.— While the war was going on 
in the West the armies in the East were not idle. Early 
in the spring, a land and naval force under General Burn- 



220 



THE MERRLMAC AND MONITOR. 



side and Commodore Goldsborough took Roanoke Island 
and Newbern, North Carolina ; Elizabeth City was cap- 
tured, and a Confederate flotilla at that place destroyed; 
Fort Pulaski, at the entrance of the Savannah River, was 
also taken, and other places along the coast. 

The Merrimac and Monitor.— When Norfolk, Virginia, 
was taken bv the Confederates, the Union commander had 





BATTLE BETWEEN THE MERRIMAC AiND MONITOR. 

sunk several vessels, among \vhich was the Merrimac, one 
of the finest in the United States navy. The Confederates 
raised this ship, cut her down nearh^ to the water's edge, 
built her up with sides sloping like a roof, covered her 
with railroad iron, and gave her a bow of steel. 

On the 8th of March this ironclad steamed out from Nor- 
folk to Hampton Roads and destro^-ed the wooden ships 
Cumberland and Congress, whose broadsides produced no 
effect on the monster. Night came on to prevent the de- 



THE PENINSULAR WAR. 221 

struction of other national A^essels, but it was feared that 
the Merrimac would return in the morning to complete the 
work she had begun. 

About nine o'clock that night a newly invented vessel, 
called the Monitor, in command of Lieutenant Worden, 
reached the scene of action. The Monitor was planned 
and built by Captain Ericsson, of New York, an engineer 
of Swedish birth. She Avas one hundred and seventy feet 
long, and looked like a "cheese-box on a raft." When the 
Merrimac sailed out the next day she met this new and 
strange foe. Hour after hour the battle raged, neither 
producing much effect on the other. At last a shell from 
the Monitor passed through a port hole of the Merrimac, 
killing and \vounding several of her crew ; she then steamed 
back to Norfolk, leaving the little Monitor ^vith a parting 
shot. 

This victorj' over the Merrimac was hailed with joy in the North, as she might 
have destroj'ed the shipping in all our great harbors, and even the cities them- 
selves. The fight proved that w-ooden ships of war are of little use, and all nations 
began to build armored vessels. 

The Peninsular Campaig-n.— Early in October, McClellan 
was at the head of two hundred thousand men, the largest 
army ever gathered on the American continent. The peo- 
ple of the North looked for an immediate advance, and the 
cry, " On to Richmond ! " was heard on every hand ; but the 
grand armj^ was not set in motion till the 10th of March, 
'when it was found that the Confederate works in front 
had been evacuated. The plan of the campaign was then 
changed. A portion of the army remained for the defense 
of Washington, while McClellan with one hundred and 
twenty thousand men sailed down the Potomac and landed 
at Fortress Monroe. From this point he moved slowh^ up 
the peninsula between the James and York Rivers, to at- 
tack the enem^^ at Yorktown. 



222 



BATTLE OF FAIR OAKS. 




Yorktown and Williamsburg-.— At Yorktown, where 

Cornwallis had surrendered eighty years before, McClellan 

found a small Confederate force, which delayed his advance 
for a whole month, or until the 4th of 
May. The Confederates then retreated 
to Williamsburg, where the}^ made a 
stand, but were defeated with consid- 
erable loss. 

Battle of Fair Oaks.— The Union 
arm\' now advanced towards Rich- 
mond. When it had reached Fair 
Oaks, or Seven 
Pines, which was 

but seven miles from that city, it was 

attacked by a Confederate force under 

General Joseph E. Johnston. For a 

part of two days the battle raged with 

great fur^-. At last, the Confederates 

were obliged to fall back, but the Union 
victory was not 
complete. 

Among the severely wounded was General John- 
ston, Commander-in-Chief of the Confederates. His 
place \vas soon filled by the appointment of General 
Robert E. Lee, a man of j^reat militarj' genius. 

Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley. 

— AlcClcllan intrenched himself, and 
waited for re-enforcements under Gen- 
eral McDowell, who was to march 
across the country from Fredericks- 
burg. But Lee had sent Stonewall Jackson with a Confed- 
erate force into the Shenandoah Valley to threaten Wash- 
ington, and this skillful soldier kept McDowell so busy that 
no troops could be spared for McClellan. 





THE SEVEN DAYS' BATTLES. 223 

After fighting the Union forces under Fremont at Cross 
Kej's, and at Port Republic under General Shields, Jackson 
suddenly slipped away towards Richmond, and was soon 
threatening to cut off McClellan's lines. 

The Seven Days' Battles.— McClellan then thought it 
best to fall back to the James River. In doing this he was 
attacked by the Confederate army under General Lee. For 
seven da\^s terrible battles ensued, the Union forces fighting 
during the day, and, though holding their own, retreating 
at night. At Malvern Hills, the last of this series of bat- 
tles, General Lee was defeated, and the Union generals 
were anxious to follow up their victor3'; but McClellan 
ordered a retreat to Harrison's Landing, on the James, 
where the army w^as under protection of the gunboats. 

The News of McClellan's Retreat. — The total loss in 
these battles was more than thirty thousand men. The 
people of the North received the news of McClellan's re- 
treat and the failure of the Richmond campaign with great 
sorrow; but the South was much encouraged. 

Second Battle of Bull Run.— As Richmond was no longer 
in danger from McClellan's army, Lee moved northward, 
again threatening Washington. He met General Pope, in 
command of what was called the Army of Virginia, on the 
old battle-field of Bull Run, and gained a victory over him, 
compelling the Union forces to fall back towards Wash- 
ington. 

Battle of Antietam.— Lee took advantage of this victory 
and crossed the Potomac into Maryland, landing his army 
on Northern soil. Meanwhile the remnants of the Union 
army had been brought in boats from the James to Wash- 
ington, and with all the troops that could be gathered, 
McClellan was sent against Lee, whom he met at Antie- 
tam, Maryland (September 16-17). A battle w^as fought 



224 



THE ARMIES OF THE WEST. 



ill which over one hundred thousand men were actually 
engaged, and the loss on both sides was great. The Union 
army had the advantage, and Lee retreated under cover 
of night, re -crossing the Potomac into Virginia. 

McClellan did not follow up his victory, and as there 
was gi-eat dissatisfaction on account of his many delays, he 
was removed from command, and General Ambrose E. Bum- 
side placed at the head of the "Army of the Potomac." 







RAILROAD BATTERY. 



Battle of Fredericksburg".— Bumside marched into Vir- 
ginia, crossed the Rappahannock, and took Fredericksburg, 
but in an attempt to storm the Confederate Avorks back 
of the town he was repulsed with great slaughter, and 
was obliged to fall back. 

The Armies of the West.— During this time the armies 
of the West were in motion. The South was not willing 



PLAN FOR THE CAPTURE OF YICKSBURG. 225 

to give up Kentuckj^ many of whose citizens desired to 
make it a Confederate state ; and a large force under Gen- 
eral Bragg marched into the state from Chattanooga, 
Bragg advanced as far as Louisville, where he was turned 
back 133^ a Union force under General Buell, and returned 
to East Tennessee, fighting the battle of Perryville on his 
way. 

Battles of luka and Corinth.— The forces under General 
Grant had sharj^ engagements with the Confederates at 
luka and Corinth, in which the Confederates were defeated, 
but not captured. 

Plan for the Capture of Vicksburg-.^In order to open 
the Mississippi, Grant was to march his army to the rear 
of Vicksburg, while Sherman, with another force and a fleet 
of gunboats under Commodore Porter, was to move down 
the river to co-operate with Grant in the attack. But a 
Confederate cavalry force swept down on Holly Springs, 
and destro3'ed a large quantity of provisions gathered for 
Grant's arm\', and this hindered the expected movement. 
Sherman made the proposed attack, but as he was unsup- 
ported by Grant, was defeated with great loss. 

Battle of Murfreesboro.— The j^ear closed with the bat- 
tle of Murfreesboro. General Bragg marched north the sec- 
ond time, and, on the morning of December 31, attacked 
Rosecrans, no\v in command of Buell's arm3^, at Stone 
River, near Murfreesboro. A furious conflict ensued, lasting 
all day. ^On the 2d of Januar^^, 1863, the battle was re- 
nev^^ed. The struggle was a desperate one, but the Con- 
federates finally withdrew from the field and marched for 
Chattanooga. The loss on each side was more than ten 
thousand men. 

Freeing- the Slaves as a War Measure.— So far, the gov- 
ernment had sought to preserve the Union without freeing 

15 



226 THE SIOUX MASSACRE. 

the slaves. In his inaugural, President Lincoln had told 
the South that the government had no intention of inter- 
fering with slaver3^, and when Fremont and other Union 
generals had undertaken to free the slaves, he had set aside 
their action. 

It was now seen that the negroes cared for the w^omen 
and children of the South while all the able-bodied whites 
were away to the war; that they w^orked on the planta- 
tions and kept the Confederate army supplied with food ; 
that they w^ere employed in building fortifications ; that in 
many other w^ays the\' \vere helpful to the Southern cause ; 
and the President felt that to offer freedom to the blacks 
would be the surest wa3' of weakening the Confederates, 
strengthening the Northern armies, and preserving the 
Union. Accordingly, on the 22d of September, a procla- 
mation w^as issued containing, among other things, the 
following: "That on the first day of Januar3^, in the year 
of our Lord 1863, all persons held as slaves within any 
state or designated part of a state, the people whereof 
shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall 
be then, thenceforth, and forever free." This proclamation 
was the most important event of the 3'ear. 

The Sioux Massacre. — in August of this year, when many of the young men 
of Minnesota were in the South fighting for the Union, a terrible massacre oc- 
curred. The Sioux Indians were occupying reservations on the upper Minnesota 
River. Settlers had encroached on their lands, traders had wronged them, their 
annuities had not been promptly paid, and they became dissatisfied and rose 
against the whites. 

In a week, "More than eight hundred settlers were Ijing mutilafed and dead 
and others were suflering the horrors of a cruel captivity. Thoiisands of crazed 
fugitives were fleeing for safety, and for hundreds of miles the frontier was a 
scene of desolation, where once had reigned peace and prosperity." — Kirk's His- 
tory of Minnesota. 

Forces under General H. H. Sibley and others were sent against the savages, 
and the outbreak was quelled. Three hundred of the leaders were tried and con- 
demned to death, but President Lincoln forbade the carrying out of the sentence, 
save in the case of thirty-eight, who were hung at Mankato, December 28. 



THE SLAVES SET FREE. 227 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. Men in arms. 

2. Capture of Forts Henry and Donelson. 

3. Battle of Shiloli. 

4. Capture of New Orleans. 

5. Operations on the coast. 

6. The Merrimac and Monitor. 

7. The Peninsular campaign. 

8. Yorktown and Williamsburg. 

9. Battle of Fair Oaks. 

10. Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley. 

11. The Seven Days' Battles. 

12. The news of McClellan's retreat. 

13. Second battle of Bull Run. 

14. Battle of Antietam. 

15. Battle of Fredericksburg. 

16. The armies of the West. 

17. Battles of luka and Corinth. 

18. Plan for the capture of Vicksburg. 

19. Battle of Murfreesboro. 

20. Freeing the slaves as a war measure, 

21. The Sioux massacre. 



Chapter XLII. 

EVENTS OF 1863. 

The Slaves Set Free.— True to his promise, on New 
Year's day, 1863, President Lincohi issued a second procla- 
mation declaring the slaves free. The Union officers nov^ 
set the negroes at liberty wherever the armies marched. 
Negro regiments were rapidly formed, and, during the re- 
mainder of the war, colored troops fought bravely on many 
a bloody field. 

President Lincoln gave the original manuscript of his Emancipation Proclama- 
tion to the ladies having in charge the Northwestern Fair for the Sanitarj' Com- 
mission, Chicago, accompanjdng the gift with an autograph letter, in which he 
says, "I had some desire to retain the paper; but if it shall contribute to the 
relief or comfort of the soldiers, that is better." 



228 A CLOUD OF GLOOM. 

"The manuscript was purchased for three thousand dollars, bv Thomas B. 
Brj'an, for the Chicago Soldiers' Home, of which association he was president. It 
was finelj' lithographed, and copies were sold by the Board of Managers for the 
benefit of a permanent home for invalid Illinois soldiers, thousands of dollars 
accruing to the fund from their sale. The original manuscript was finally placed 
in the archives of the Chicago Historical Societj' for safe keeping, and was there 
burned at the time of the great conflagration." — My Story of the H'ar, by Mary A. 
Liverniure. 

The Campaig-n of Chancellorsville.— Bumside having re- 
signed, General Joseph E. Hooker was placed in command 
of the Army of the Potomac. Both armies spent the win- 
ter in preparing for a great campaign. Hooker moved 
forward early in May with his splendid army of nearh' 
one hundred and twentv^ thousand men, but he was de- 
feated by Lee with a much smaller fotx:e, in what was 
called the campaign of Chancellorsville, in which the Con- 
federates lost Stonewall Jackson, their popular general. 

T.J.Jackson was the General's real name, the appellation "Stonewall" having 
its origin in a remark of General Bee at the battle of Bull Run. In rallying his 
retreating men, Bee shouted, "There is Jackson, standing like a stone wall!" 

A Cloud of Gloom. — The defeat of the Union forces under 
Hooker caused a cloud of gloom to settle over the North. 
The cost of the war had become very great. Soldiers 
were being drafted, and large sums were paid as bounties 
to volunteers. Desertions were frequent, and those who 
sympathized with the South were crj^ng, "The war is a 
failure." 

Draft Riot in New Yovk, — in some places the draft excited great opposition. 
In New York, on the 13th of JuU-, a riot broke out which lasted four days, and 
was only put down by militarj' force. The mob was set on bj' disloyal papers, 
and by hand-bills which appealed to the people to resist and assert their liberties. 
Manj- buildings were sacked and burned, and a large number of persons killed. 
The mob hunted the innocent colored people, and, "many a black woman had 
her humble habitation sacked and devastated, as she barely escaped into the 
street." The Colored Orphan Asylum, a costl3' building, furnishing shelter and 
food to two hundred orphans, was burned, and much of its furniture given to 
the wives and daughters of the howling mob, who stood near to receive it.* 



'See Greelej''s American Conflict. 



BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



229 




Battle of Gettysburg". — General Lee was encouraged by 
his victory, and, again resolving to carr^^ the war into 
Mar^dand and Pennsylvania, marched 
down the Shenandoah Valley, crossed 
the Potomac and pressed on towards 
Harrisburg. Near Gettysburg his ad- 
vance was met by the Union cavalr3^, 
and a battle w^as brought on. General 
George G. Meade had taken the place 
of Hooker, and the Union forces were 
commanded by him. 

The two armies, each numbering not 
less than eighty thousand men, met face to face. The fear- 
ful struggle began July 1, and continued three days. On 
the afternoon of July 3, a Confederate 
column three miles long, led by General 
Pickett, made a terrible charge on the 
Union center. The charge was repulsed 
with awful slaughter, and the national 
army was victorious. Lee then with- 
drew his shattered forces into Virginia. 
This great battle was the turning 
point of the war. It cost the South 
nearly thirty thousand men, and the 
Union army lost about twenty-three thousand. 

The National Cemetery at Gettysburg. — A few months later, tbere was a great 
meeting of men and women on the battle-field of Gett3'sbiirg to dedicate a part 
of it as a cemeterj' for the remains of the thousands of brave soldiers ^vho had 
fallen. On that occasion President Lincoln gave the following address : 

" Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth upon this continent 
a new nation, conceived in libertj-, and dedicated to the proposition that all men 
are created equal. Now, we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether 
that nation, or anj"- nation, so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We 
are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion 
of that field as a final resting-place for those who here gave their lives that our 
nation might live. It is fitting that we should do this; but, in a larger sense, we 





PICKETT'S CHARGE A' 



mmmmmm . uitjm i 



•'''•^■^^'^"■^^^■BMWilBSiaBBWOIIWW^W!^^ 




FTYSBURG. 



232 CAPTURE OF VICKSBURG. 

cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living- and dead, who struggled here, 
have consecrated it far beyond anything we can do. The world will little note, 
nor long remember, what we siiy here; but it can never forget what they did 
here. It is for us, the living, rather to dedicate ourselves to the unfinished work 
which they, who fought here, have thus far so nobly advanced; to consecrate 
ourselves to the great task remaining; and to gather from the graves of these 
honored dead increased devotion to that cause for which they gave their lives. 
Here let us resolve that they shall not have died in vain; that this nation shall, 
under God, have a new birth of freedom; and that government of the people, 
by the people, and for the people shall not perish forever from the earth." 

Capture of Vicksburg-.— Early in the spring, efforts for 
the capture of Vicksburg \vere renewed. The cit3^ is situated 
on a high bluff, and was thoroughh^ defended on all sides 
by batteries. General Grant tried for several weeks to 
take the works by approaches from the north; but fail- 
ing in this, he crossed the Mississippi above, and marched 
down past the city on the west side. On the nights of 
April 16 and 22, the fleet ran down the river, receiving the 
fire of eight miles of batteries with little damage. The 
army was then safely moved across the river by the fleet, 
and, taking up its line of march to the northward, was 
soon in the rear of Vicksburg. 

General Pemberton, wdio was in command of the Con- 
federate forces, came out to meet Grant, but was driven 
back into his works; and General Johntson, who was com- 
ing to Pemberton's aid, was defeated at Jackson. Two 
desperate assaults having been made upon the w^orks 
without success, a regular siege Avas begun, and a line of 
earthworks fifteen miles in length w^as thrown up in the 
rear of the town. Two hundred cannon threw their shot 
from the Union works; and the fleet sent enormous shells 
which exploded in all parts of the cit}'. 

Cut off from retreat the inhabitants took shelter in holes 
dug in the earth. Food became so scarce that mules and 
horses were eaten, and the soldiers were placed on half- 
rations. 



THE MISSISSIPPI OPENED. 233 

After a siege of forty-seven days, Pemberton asked Grant 
for terms of surrender, and the two generals met under 
an oak at three o'clock in the afternoon of July 3, the 
very hour when the Confederates were making their final 
charge at Gettysburg. The city surrendered July 4, and 
twenty-seven thousand men laid down their arms and be- 
came prisoners of war. 

The Mississippi Opened.— Port Hudson, which had been 
besieged by General N. P. Banks, surrendered a few days 
later. The great river was now open to our steamers, and 
the Confederacy was cut in twain. On July 16, a steamer 
left St. Louis for New Orleans, making the first trip after 
a blockade of two years. 

Battles in Tennessee.— After the battle of Murfreesboro 
the armies of Bragg and Rosecrans remained inactive un- 
til June, when Rosecrans set his forces in motion, and b3^ 
a series of movements compelled Bragg to evacuate Chat- 
tanooga. Bragg was re-enforced by troops sent from Vir- 
ginia, and turned upon his pursuers. The two armies met 
in the valley of the Chickamauga — a river of death — and 
a t-wo days' battle ensued (September 19-20), in which the 
Union forces were saved from destruction by the bravery 
of General George H. Thomas, who there won the name, 
"Rock of Chickamauga." 

The Union army fell back to Chattanooga during the 
night, where it remained for two months, hemmed in by 
Confederate forces occupying the surrounding hills. Ten 
thousand animals died, and the army itself was threatened 
with starvation. Hooker was sent by rail with re -en- 
forcements from the army of the Potomac, and Sherman 
brought his army from luka, fighting on his way. Grant 
was placed in command, and in three days great victories 
were won. 

15 



234. 



SIEGE OF CHARLESTON. 




fc| GEN. G H. THOMAS. Lj 



General Thomas captured Orchard Knob ; General Hooker 
scaled the heights of Lookout Mountain, and fought a bat- 
tle above the clouds; Sherman at- 
tacked Missionary Ridge, and the 
whole army charged up the mountain 
side, carrying the enemy's works at 
every point. More than forty thou- 
sand men were lost in these battles; 
but the Confederates were driven from 
East Tennessee, and the way to Geor- 
gia, Alabama, and the Carolinas was 
opened. 

Sieg'e of Charleston. — During 1863 no great advance 
had been made in the "Department of the South." Early 
in April Admiral Dupont attacked Charleston with a fleet 
of ironclads, but was repulsed with considerable damage. 
Later, the siege was renewed by land and naval forces, 
which finally resulted in the capture of Fort Wagner, Bat- 
tery Gregg, Folly and Morris Islands; but Charleston 
remained in the hands of the Confederates at the close of 
the year. 

Topics. — Tell about — 

1. The slaves set free. 

2. The campaign of Chancellorsville. 
A cloud of gloom. 
The draft riot in New York. 
Battle of Gettysburg. 
The National Cemetery at Gett3-sburg. 
Capture of Vicksburg. 
Opening of the Mississippi. 

Battles in Tennessee — Chickamauga, Lookout Moun- 
tain, Missionar3'- Ridge. 



3. 
4. 
5. 
6. 
7. 
8. 
9. 



10. Siege of Charleston. 



RED RIYER EXPEDITION. 



235 



Chapter XLIII. 

events of 1864. 

The Red River Expedition.— Early in the spring a land 
force in command of General Banks, with a fleet tinder 
Admiral Porter, moved tip Red River to capture Shreve- 




EIVEE GUNBOATS. 

port and subdue Northern Louisiana and Texas. There 
was some sharp fighting, but the expedition was not suc- 
cessful, and on its return the entire fleet came near being 
captured. 

The water of the river had fallen so that the vessels could not run down the 
rapids, and all would have been lost but for the skill of Colonel Bailej-, a Wis- 
consin lumberman, who proposed building a dam. By the dam, the depth of 
water was increased over five feet, making the stream passable for the largest 
vessels. It was a perilous descent, however. The first gunboat that tried it 



236 SHERMAN TAKES ATLANTA. 

"took the chute withciit a balk, and then rushed like an arrow through the nar- 
row aperture in the lower dam; pitched down the roaring torrent; hung for a 
moment on the rocks below; and was then swept on into deep Avater." All 
passed with but little damage, and the loss of but one man, who was swept 
overboard. — Report of Admiral Porter. 

Massacre at Fort Pillow. — The Confederate general, For- 
rest, with a force of cavalry, made a raid into Tennessee 
and Kentucky. Fort Pillow surrendered after a brave de- 
fense, and three hundred colored soldiers, who formed a 
part of the garrison, ^vere massacred. 

Grant Made Liuetenant- General.— Grant was now re- 
garded as the most successful of the Union generals, and 
he was placed in command of all the forces of the United 
States, with the title of Lieutenant -General. Two great 
movements were planned. The Armj^ of the Potomac, un- 
der General Meade, was to move against Richmond. The 
army of the West, under General W. T. Sherman, was to 
rout the Confederate forces, destroy the railroad system of 
the South, march through Georgia to 
the sea, and thus divide the Confeder- 
acy again. 

Sherman Takes Atlanta.— In Ma^^ 
Sherman's army moved forward to at- 
tack Johnston, \vho had succeeded 
Bragg in command . Johnston made sev- 
eral stands and fought bravely, but was 
forced to fall back from point to point, 
till, by the 10th of July, the whole Con- 
federate army of the center had reached Atlanta, and taken 
position behind earthworks, where Sherman's attack was 
awaited. 

Atlanta was a railroad center, with machine shops, found- 
ries, and army supplies, which the Confederate general was 
determined to hold; but President Davis was dissatisfied 




BATTLE OF NASHVILLE. 237 

with Johnston's frequent retreats, and General J. B. Hood 
was appointed in his place. Instead of fighting behind 
the earthworks, Hood made three desperate attacks on 
the Union lines around Atlanta, but was repulsed "with 
great loss. 

At length, Sherman, finding the enemy's works too 
strong to carry by direct attack, loaded his wagons with 
provisions, and, marching around the city to the rear, 
seized the railroad upon which Hood depended for sup- 
plies. The city was then evacuated by Hood, who moved 
northward intending to destroy the communication of the 
Union army ; but Sherman, instead of pursuing Hood with 
his entire force, sent General Thomas to watch him and 
defend Tennessee. 

Battle of Nashville.— At Nashville, Hood's army was de- 
feated by Thoinas (December 15-16), in a battle lasting 
two days. The Confederate loss in killed, wounded, and 
prisoners was twenty-five thousand men. For many days 
the remnants of Hood's army were pursued, as they fled, 
hungry and cold. 

Sherman's March to the Sea.— Sherman now began his 
"March to the Sea" (November 14). His army of sixty 
thousand men moved in four columns, sweeping a wide 
and fertile section. The troops foraged upon the country, 
destro^^ed railroads and bridges, and left trampled fields, 
deserted villages, and blackened ruins in their track. 

A Christmas Present.— On the 21st of December, Sher- 
man captured Savannah, where he wrote to Lincoln, "I 
beg to present j^ou, as a Christmas gift, the city of Savan- 
nah, one hundred and fifty cannon, a plenty of ammuni- 
tion, and twenty-five thousand bales of cotton." The 
Confederacy was again cleft in twain, and there was grea* 
rejoicing in the North. 



238 



THE CAMPAIGN IX VIRGINA. 



The Campaig"!! in Virg'inia.— -General Grant in person con- 
ducted the campaign for the capture of Richmond, Meade 
having subordinate command. The Army of the Potomac, 
one hundred and fort3^ thousand strong, crossed the Rapi- 
dan and entered a region of oak woods and dense thickets, 

where the Con- 
federate army, 
under Lee, was 
met, and a ter- 
rible fight en- 
sued. 

For two daj'S 
(May 5-6) the 
battle raged, and 
everywhere in 
the forest lay the 
dead and dying. 
This battle of the 
wilderness was 
not decisive, but 
Grant with his 
larger force was 
able to swing 
])artly around 
Lee, who retreat- 
-BiLL's Dom's. ed and met Grant 

at Spottsylvania, where followed one of the bloodiest strug- 
gles of the war. 

Again Grant marched to the south, outflanking Lee, 
who also moved south, and the two armies met at Cold 
Harbor, twelve miles northeast of Richmond. Here a fierce 
assault was made upon Lee (June 3), who was strongly 
intrenched. The battle lasted only twenty minutes, but 




FORAGING- 



SIEGE OF PETERSBURG. 239 

ten thousand brave Union soldiers la^^ dead before the 
works they had charged. 

In this series of battles, lasting but a month, the Fed- 
erals lost sixty thousand men. During the same period the 
Confederates lost in killed, wounded, and prisoners, about 
thirty-five thousand. 

Sieg"e of Petersburg". — Grant now moved southward 
across the James River, where he joined his forces with 
those of General Butler, who had come up the river from 
Fortress Monroe. The combined forces marched against 
Petersburg, where the Confederates were strongly in- 
trenched. Petersburg was regularly besieged, but in spite 
of every effort, the works were not taken until the follow- 
ing spring. 

Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley.— Hoping to compel 
Grant to leave Petersburg, Lee sent General Early, with a 
force of twenty thousand men, with orders to sweep down 
the Shenandoah Vallej-, invade Maryland, and threaten 
Washington. Early reached Maryland, but was soon 
checked. To prevent further raids. Grant placed General 
Philip H. Sheridan in command of the Army of the Upper 
Potomac, and he marched into the valley with a force of 
about forty thousand men. Sheridan came upon Early at 
Winchester, attacked, and routed him, and three days later 
gained a second victor^' at Fisher's Hill. 

The next month, when Sheridan was absent, his army 
Avas suddenly attacked, and driven in disorder from Cedar 
Creek. Sheridan was returning, and, hearing the firing, 
put spurs to his horse and met his army in full retreat. 
He rallied his men, charged, and routed the enemy, captur- 
ing many prisoners and fifty pieces of artillery. 

On this event, Read's ballad, entitled "Sheridan's Ride," 
is founded. (See page 272.) 



240 CONFEDERATE CRUISERS. 

"Up from the South at lireak of day. 
Bringing to Winchester fresh dismay, 
The afirightcd air with a shudder bore. 
Like a herald in haste to the chieftain's door. 
The terrible grrumble, and rumble, and roar, 
Telling the battle was on once more, 
And Sheridan twenty miles away. 
* » • 

" A steed as black as the steeds of night, 
Was seen to pass, as with eagle flight. 
As if he knew the terrible need, 
He stretched away with his utmost speed ; 
Hills rose and fell ; but his heart was gay. 
With Sheridan fifteen miles away." 

These brilliant victories ruined Eariy's army, and gave 
the Union forces complete control of the valley. 




SINKINf. OF Tni" ALABAMA. 

Confederate Cruisers.- During the war the commerce 
of the United States was greatly injured by Confederate 
cruisers. When the blockade of Southern ports became so 



CAPTURE OF MOBILE. 



241 



close that ships of war could no longer be sent abroad, 
vessels were built and fitted out in British ship-yards. The 
British government took no notice of this. 

Among the cruisers carrying the Confederate flag were 
the Shenandoah, which destro3'ed thirty-four whale ships 
in Northern seas, and the Alabama, commanded by Cap- 
tain Raphael Semmes, which took sixty-five merchant ves- 
sels. At last, the Alabama, after scouring the seas for 
months, was attacked by the United States ship Kear- 
sarge. Captain Winslow, near Cherbourg, France, and, after 
an engagernent of two hours, was 
sunk, her officers and crew escaping in 
an English j^acht. 

Capture of Mobile.— Mobile Bay was 
a great resort for blockade runners. 
It was defended by two forts, and also 
by a fleet and torpedoes placed in the 
channel. A powerful squadron, under 
Admiral Farragut, aided by a land 
force, was sent against Mobile. Far- 
ragut boldly sailed past the forts into the ba3% and gained 
a victory over the fleet, after which the forts were captured 
(August 5). 

The forts were passed at sunrise, the fleet moving in pairs firmlj- lashed to- 
gether. Farragut took his place in the maintop shrouds of his flag-ship, the 
Hartford, where, high in air, with spj'-glass in liand, he directed the battle. 
" We see our ships ; we name each pair. 
We greet the gallant flag-ship there ; 
God help them all this day ! 
Through crashing shot and bursting shell. 
With a courage that no words can tell, 
• They force a fiery way ! 

"And he who planned, who cheered, who led, 
Was where the shot flew overhead 
As thick as swarming bees; 
What might betide, what might befall. 
Here was the brave old admiral 
Lashed in the main cross-trees." 




242 LINCOLN RE-ELECTED. 

Lincoln Re -Elected.— At the presidential election in the 
autumn of 1864, Mr. Lincoln was chosen for a second 
term, and Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, was elected 
Vice-President. General George B. McClellan and General 
George H. Pendleton were the candidates of the Demo- 
cratic party. Mr. Lincoln's majority was A^ery large, Mc- 
Clellan carrying only Kentucky and Delaware. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. The Red River expedition. 

2. Massacre at Fort Pillow. 

3. Lieutenant -General Grant. 

4. Sherman at Atlanta. 

5. Battle of Nashville. 

6. Sherman's march to the sea. 

7. A Christmas present. 

8. The campaign in Virginia — the Wilderness, Spottsyl- 

vania, Cold Harbor. 

9. Siege of Petersburg. 

10. Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley — Winchester, Fish- 

er's Hill, Cedar Creek. 

11. Confederate cruisers — Shenandoah, Alabama. 

12. Capture of Mobile — Farragut in the shrouds. 

13. Lincoln's re-election. 



Chapter XLIV. 

close of the war- 1865. 

Sherman's March Northward.— On the first of February 
Sherman's army was again in motion. Columbia was cap- 
tured on the 17th, compelling the evacuation of Charleston, 
Avhich was soon occupied b}' General Gilraore, ^Yho had be- 
sieged it for a long time; and the starry flag was hoisted 
over Fort Sumter (February 18). where it had not been 
seen since the surrender of Alajor Anderson. 



CAPTURE OF RICHMOND. 



243 



The condition of Charleston when entered b^- the Union forces is thus described 
by an eye -witness: "Not a building for blocks is exempt from the marks of shot 
and shell. All have suffered more or less. Here is a fine brown-stone bank build- 
ing, vacant and deserted, with great, gaping holes in the sides and roof, through 
\vhich the sun shines and the rain pours ; windows and sashes blown out by ex- 
ploding shell within; plastering knocked down; counters torn up, floors crushed 
in, and fragments of pavement, broken and crushed, l3-ing around on the floor." 




FIELD HOSPITAL. 



Sherman still pressed northward, gaining a victory over 
General Hardee, and another over General Johnston near 
Goldsboro (March 19), after which a jmnction was formed 
with Union forces under Schofield, from Ne^wbem, and 
under Terry, from Wilmington. The Federal army, thus 
strengthened, resumed its march to Raleigh, which was en- 
tered April 13. This ended Sherman's great march. 



244 DEATH OF PRESIDENT I.IXCOLX. 

Capture of Richmond.— All the fall and winter Grant 
pressed the siege of Petersburg without being able to gain 
a decided victory; on the 29th of Alarch the final move- 
ment began. Generals Sheridan and Warren were sent to 
attack Lee's right flank, and the battle of Five Forks en- 
sued, in which the Confederates were defeated with a loss 
of six thousand prisoners. A general attack was now 
made, and the works at Petersburg were carried. That 
night the Confederate government and Lee's armj'- fled 
from Richmond, and the next morning the city w^as entered 
by Grant. 

End of the War. — General Lee, hoping to join his army 
to that of Johnston in Carolina, retreated to the south- 
west, but he was so sorely pressed that "hundreds of sol- 
diers dropped from exhaustion, and thousands let fall their 
muskets from inabiHty to carry them." Near Appomattox 
Court House, on the 9th of April, 1865, Lee surrendered 
his army to General Grant. The surrender of other Con- 
federate forces soon followed, and the great Rebellion was 
at an end. 

Death of President Lincoln.— There was great rejoicing 
all over the North when the news of Lee's surrender and 
the end of the war sped over the wires. But a few daj^s 
later the joy was turned into mourning by the assassina- 
tion of President Lincoln. On the evening of April 14, 
while sitting in a theater, where he had gone with his 
wife to seek rest from his many cares, an actor, named 
John Wilkes Booth, stole into the President's box and sent 
a pistol shot through his brain. Lincoln lay unconscious 
until morning, when he quietly passed away. 

No other president since the da3's of Washington had 
borne so heav}^ a burden. He was lovingly called "Honest 
Old Abe," and ever\'bod\' knew that he had a tender heart, 



LINCOLN MEDALS. 245 

and was far-seeing, resolute, and patient. His quaint humor 
never forsook him, even in the darkest days of war; and 
he bore no ill-will even towards those who had taken 
arms against his country. In his inaugural address, but 
a month before, he had used these grand words: "With 
malice towards none, with charity for all, with firmness 
in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive 
on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's 
wounds, to care for him v^ho has borne the battle, and 
for his widow and his orphans, to do all which may 
achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among our- 
selves and with all nations." 

Lincoln Medals. — The assassination of President Lincoln made a deep impres- 
sion on the people of every civilized land. No less than one hundred and eight3-- 
nine medals were strvick in his honor. Forty thousand French Democrats, desiring 
to express their sympathj' for the American Union, caused a magnificent gold 
medal to be presented to the President's widow. It is about four inches in diam- 
eter. On one side is a raised profile of Mr. Lincoln, surrounded by the words, 
"Dedicated by the French Democracy. A. Lincoln, Twice Elected President of 
the United States." On the reverse side is an altar with the following inscrip- 
tion: "Lincoln. Honest Alan. Abolished Slaverj', Re-established the Union, and 
Saved the Republic, without Veiling the Statue of Libert}'. He was Assassinated 
the 14th of April, 1865." On one side of the altar stands Victory with a sword 
and v^^reath ; on the other are two emancipated slaves, together with emblems 
of industry and progress. 

Capture of Jefferson Davis. — Jefferson Davis fled, with his wife and family, but 
was overtaken and captured near Macon, Georgia, by Colonel Pritchard, of Wil- 
son's command. For two j-ears he \vas confined as prisoner of state at Fortress 
Monroe, but was released without trial in 1868. 

New States. — West Virginia was admitted to the Union in 
1863, and Nevada, the Silver State, named from the snow- 
covered mountains on the west, joined the Union in 1864. 

Topics. — Tell what j'ou can of — 

1. Sherman's march northward — Fall of Charleston. 

2. Capture of Richmond. 

3. End of the war. 

4. Death of Lincoln. 

5. Lincoln medals. 

6. Capture of Jefferson Davis. 

7. New states. 



246 WHAT THE WAR DECIDED. 



Chapter XLV. 

other matters relating to the war. 

What the War Decided.— The great Civil War, as it is 
called, decided : 

1. That the Union is to be preserved — that a state may 
not secede — not a star is to be stricken from the dear old 
flag! 

2. That there shall be no slaves on our soil — liberty- 
was proclaimed throughout all the land. 

3. That one nation, the United States, is to be the great 
power in North America. 

Enlistments and Losses. — The whole number of men 
called into the Union service during the war was nearly 
2,700,000. As many of the men enlisted twice or thrice, 
and many deserted, it is probable that not more than 
1,500,000 were actually in the field. Of this number, 180,- 
000 were blacks. The Confederates, it is said, mustered 
in 1,300,000 men. The losses by death, on both sides, 
amounted to nearly 600,000. Add the crippled and those 
who were disabled by disease, and the loss reaches a total, 
of 1,000,000 men. 

One must stop to think in order to form any idea of these vast numbers. An 
army representing the six hundred thousand dead, if marching four abreast, 
twenty miles a day, would be six days in passing a given point ; while the crijiples 
and disabled, if arranged in the same way, would make a column eight j- miles 
in length. 

Cost of the War.— The war cost the government more 
than $2,700,000,000. The people of the loyal states con- 
tributed, of their own free will, $500,000,000. The Confed- 
erate debt amounted to $2,000,000,000, and the free offer- 



THE PUBLIC DEBT. 



247 



rings of the people of the South were ver\^ large. Besides 
these vast sums, there were the desolated fields, the ruined 
villages and cities, the demolished railroads and bridges, on 
which no price can be set. 

If the sum which the war cost the government -were in silver dollars, more than 
seventj'-nine thousand farm wagons might be loaded with the treasure. This num- 
ber of wagons, with two horses to each, would form a train five nundred miles 
in length. 




UNION REFUGEES. 



During the war large numbers of refugees, white and black, found protection 
■within the Union lines. Men, women, and children deserted their homes, seeking 
food, clothing, and medicine at the headquarters of the Sanitary Commission, 
•wherever it chanced to be established. 

The Public Debt.— To meet the expenses of the war the 
government placed duties on tea, coffee, tobacco, and 
many other articles. Revenue stamps were used on notes, 
checks, bonds, and mortgages; and the government bor- 
rowed money by giving interest - bearing bonds payable 



248 SOLDIERS IN PRISON. 

after a certain number of 3'ears. It also issued paper 
money, or "greenbacks," which ^vere used to pay all 
debts and taxes. The greenbacks Avere "legal tender," and 
as the government was pledged to redeem them in coin, 
everybod}" felt safe. The loA-al people knew that "Uncle 
Sam" would be as good as his word. A large portion of 
the war debt has already been paid. The Confederate Avar 
debt has not been paid, and the bonds of the Confederacy 
are worthless. Before the war closed its paper money was 
worth no more than five cents on the dollar, and, after 
the defeat of Lee, it had no value whatever. 

Soldiers in Prison. — Libby, Belle Isle, and Danville, in 
Virginia; Salisbury prison, in North Carolina; Anderson- 
ville and Millen j^risons, in Georgia; and Charleston, in 
South Carolina, were the principal places where Union 
prisoners were confined during the war. In all these the 
captives sometimes endured terrible sufferings. Most of 
the prisons Avere camps surrounded bA' high stockades and 
guarded by Confederate soldiers. In these prison pens thou- 
sands of men AA^ere huddled together, exposed to rains, 
dcAA^s, and frosts, and AAathout suitable food, AA^ater, cloth- 
ing, or medical aid. 

The prison pen at Andersonville is thus described by Inspector-General Chand- 
ler, a Confederate officer, who visited it in July, 1864: "No shelter whatever, 
nor materials for constructing any, had been provided by the prison authorities, 
and the ground being entirelj' bare of trees, none is within the reach of the pris- 
oners, nor has it been possible, from the overcrowded state of the inclosure, to 
arrange the camp with any sj'stcm. Each man has been permitted to protect 
himself as best he can by stretching his blanket, or whatever he maj- have about 
him, on such sticks as he can procure. Of other shelter there has been none. 

" There is no medical attendance within the stockade. Many (twenty yesterday) 
are carted out daily who have died from unknown causes, and whom the medical 
officers have never seen. The dead are hauled out daily bj- the wagon load. » » * 
Raw rations have to be issued to a very large portion, who are entirely unpro- 
vided with proper utensils, and furnished with so limited a supply of fuel that 
they are compelled to dig with their hands in the filthy marsh before mentioned 
for roots, etc. No soap or clothing has ever been issued." 



CHRISTIAN AND SANITARY COMMISSIONS. 249 

As the Confederate soldiers usually treated captives fairly, 
they are not to be held responsible for these sufferings. 
The blame must fall upon those who were in authority, 
and, as a writer says, "It was scarcely their fault that 
their prisoners were coarsely and scantil3^ fed during the 
last year or more Avherein their armies \vere on half-ra- 
tions, and when no one willingly gave grain or meat for 
their currency ; but they at no time lacked either eligible 
sites or timber; and there is no excuse for failure to pro- 
vide ample and commodious shelter, with abundance of 
pure water and fuel." 

Large numbers of Confederate prisoners were confined 
at Elmira, N. Y., at Camp Douglas, Chicago, and on Rock 
Island, in the Mississippi; and complaint was made of 
officers who held them in custod}^ especially of those at 
Camp Douglas, where there had been frequent attempts to 
overpov^'cr the guards, and the utmost vigilance seemed nec- 
essary. But in the main, the government was able to supply 
ample shelter, Avholesome food, and medical attendance. 

Christian and Sanitary Commissions.— All through the 
great struggle, the government and the army had the ac- 
tive sympathy of the people of the North. Everj^where 
associations were formed for the relief of the brave soldiers. 
A Christian Commission Avas organized to give moral 
and religious instruction. It scattered Bibles, hymn-books, 
papers, and magazines ; held daily prayer-meetings in every 
camp; and in all the chief cities provided pleasant rooms, 
with books and writing material for the free use of sol- 
diers. A Sanitary Commission was also organized, and 
from Maine to Oregon it had its army of helpers. For 
every soldier sent to the front, there was at least one 
worker for his support among the million laborers enlisted 
in aid of the Commission. 

16 




WORK OF THE SANITARY COMMISSION. 



UNION NURSES. 251 

The loving hands of women toiled ceaselessly. They 
scraped lint, made bandages, shirts, towels, bed-ticks, pil- 
lows, and hospital clothing. Nurses bent over the wounded 
and dying on every one of the six hundred pitched battle- 
fields of the war; they were the angels who watched in 
every hospital. The Commission furnished ambulances, 
hospital cars, steamers, stretchers, canned fruits, medicines, 
hot coffee, paper, envelopes, reading matter, taverns for 
discharged soldiers and those absent on sick leave. "The 
blue and the gray shared alike in their offices of mercy." 

The United States Sanitary Commission sprung from seed sown and chiefly 
nurtured by woman. On the verj- day when Lincoln called for seventy-five thou- 
sand volunteers, the women of Bridgeport, Connecticut, formed a societj' to aflford 
relief and comfort to soldiers. On the same day Miss Almena Bates, of Charles- 
town, Massachusetts, took steps to organize a similar society, and, a few days 
later, the women of Lowell, and of Cleveland, Ohio, were making a move in the 
same direction. In this way the grand work had its beginning. When the war 
closed, it was found that the people of the land had given five million dollars in 
cash, and supplies valued at fifteen million dollars. 

Union Nurses. — Miss Dorothea L. Dix, the philanthropist who had done so 
much for prisoners, lunatics, and paupers, offered her services gratuitously to the 
government, and obtained its sanction for the organization of hospitals and the 
furnishing of nurses for them. Eight daj'S after the 
President's call for troops, the Secretary of War, 
Simon Cameron, issued a proclamation, announcing 
the acceptance of Miss Dix's services, and all ^vomen 
who offered themselves as nurses were requested to 
report to her. Edwin M. Stanton, called the great 
war secretarj', \vho succeeded Mr. Cameron, did all 
in his power to aid Miss Dix, and in a short time sev- 
eral hundred women were being trained in the hos- 
pitals under her direction. 

Mrs. Mary A. Livermore was active in the work 
of the Sanitary Coinmission from the earliest organi- 
zation of aid societies in the city of Chicago until the 
joyful news of peace was sent over the land. Some- 
times she was in its busy rooms at home, sometimes in the hospitals, or engaged 
^vith soldiers' aid societies in the Northwest. 

Mrs. Jane C. Hoge was the friend of Mrs. Livermore, and her co-worker. She 
had two sons in the armj-, and gave herself to the work of relieving sick and 
wounded soldiers ; assisting in collecting, cutting, making, and packing whatever 
was needed, and visiting hospitals at the front. 




252 A soldier's psalm of woman. 

Miss Mary J. Safford, of Cairo, Illinois, \vas the first woman in the West to 
enter upon hospital and camp relief. She spent freely of her wealth, and, though 
frail, small in stature, and unaccustomed to hardship, she threw herself into the 
work with such energj' and forgetfulness of self that she broke down before the 
close of the second year of the war. "The effect of her presence in the hospitals 
was magical. It was like a breath of spring borne into the bare, whitewashed 
walls — like a burst of sunlight." 

Mrs. Cordelia A. P. Harvey, of Wisconsin, passed three j-ears in the hospitals 
and at the front in devoted labor for the soldiers. 

"Mrs. Mary A. Bickerdyke stands pre-eminent. » » * She gave herself to 
the rank and file of the army — the private soldiers, for whom she had unbounded 
tenderness, and developed almost limitless resources of help and comfort. To 
them she was strength and sweetness, and for them she exercised sound, prac- 
tical sense, a ready wit, and a rare intelligence, that made her a power in the 
hospital or on the field. There was no peril she would not dare for a sick and 
wounded man. No official red tape or formality for which she cared more than 
for a common tow string, if it interfered with her in her work of relief. To their 
honor be it said, the ' boj'S ' reciprocated her affection most heartil3'. 

"'That homely figure, clad in calico, wrapped in a shawl, and surmounted 
with a "Shaker" bonnet, is more to this army than the Madonna to a Catho- 
lic!' said an officer, pointing to Mother Bickerdyke, as she emerged from the 
Sanitary Commission headquarters, in Memphis, laden with an assortment of 
supplies. Every soldier saluted her as she passed ; and those who were at leisure 
relieved her of her burden, and bore it to its destination. To the entire army of 
the West she was emphatically 'Mother Bickerdyke.' Nor have the soldiers for- 
gotten her in her poverty and old age. They remember her to-day in man^- a 
tender letter, and send her many a small donation to eke out her scantj- and 
irregular income." — My Story of the War, by Mary A. Livertnore. 

A SOLDIER'S PSALM OF WOMAN.* 

* * * * 

Oh, wives and mothers, sanctified 

By hol}^ consecrations. 
Turning our weariness aside 

With blessed ministrations! 
Oh, maidens, in whose dewy eyes, 

Perennial comforts glitter, 
Untangling war's dark mysteries. 

And making sweet the bitter — 

In desolate paths, or dangerous posts, 

By places which to-morrow 
Shall be unto these bannered hosts 

Aceldamas of sorrow ; 

•The poem from which these touching lines are taken was written by an Illi- 
nois soldier at Chattanooga, and may be found in a work entitled My Story of 
the War, by Mary A. Livermore. The author is indebted to this most interest- 
ing book for the facts contained in the brief sketches given above, except those 
relating to Miss Dix. 



WOMEN OF THE SOUTH. 253 

We hear the sound of helping feet — 

We feel j-our soft caressings — 
And all our life starts up to greet 

Your lovingness with blessings ! 

On cots of pain, on beds of woe, 

Where stricken heroes languish, 
Wan faces smile, and sick hearts grow 

Triumphant over anguish. 
While souls that starve in lonely gloom, 

Flash green with odorous praises. 
And all the lo\vly pallets bloom 

With gratitude's white daisies. 

Oh, lips that from our \vounds have sucked 

The fever and the burning ! 
Oh, tender fingers that have plucked 

The madness from our mourning! 
Oh, hearts that beat so loyal true, 

For soothing and for saving ! 
God send our hopes back unto you, 

Cro^vned ^vith immortal having! 

Women of the South. — The women of the South en- 
couraged their husbands and sons to enter the arni}^ and 
organized soldiers' rehef societies and hospital associations 
for their aid. They deprived themselves of every luxury 
the^^ could obtain in order to help the boys in gray. Hye, 
chestnuts, and ground nuts \vere made into drinks to save 
the real coffee for the soldiers. The w^omen tore their 
clothing into bandages, made wedding dresses into flags, 
sold their jewelry, heir-looms, and bridal gifts for medi- 
cines. No tongue can tell the self-denial of the Southern 
women. They carded, spun, wove, and colored their own 
garments ; pine knots and candles \vere bunied in place of 
gas ; thorns were used for hair-pins, and shoes with soles 
of wood were worn. 

National Cemeteries. — When the war was over the gov- 
ernment established National Cemeteries, into which it 
sought to gather the precious dust of the brave soldiers 
who had fallen wherever its armies had marched. For sev- 
eral 3-ears men \vere employed to search the battle-fields and 



254 DECORATION DAY. 

the routes of armies for the graves of the honored dead. 
In some cemeteries the bones of ten thousand, in others, 
of twenty thousand soldiers were gathered. On a tablet 
was recorded the name of the soldier and the battle in 
which he died; but often the record reads, "Unknown." 

Decoration Day. — No city or town North or South is 
without its soldiers' graves; and, soon after the war, in 
the South, it is said, began the custom of strewing them 
with flowers. From New Orleans to Maine a daj^ is now 
set apart for decorating soldiers' graves. The South has 
chosen a day in April, while the 30th of May is Memorial 
day in the North. As time more and more effaces the bit- 
terness of war, flowers are strewed on the graves of both 
Union and Confederate dead. As the poet sa^'s : 

From the silence of sorrowful hours 

The desolate mourners t^a, 
Lovinglj- laden with flowers, 

Alike for the friend and the foe, — 
Under the sod and the dew. 

Waiting the judgment day; 
Under the laurel, the Blue, 

Under the willow, the Gray. 
» » » ♦ 

No more shall the war-cry sever, 

Or the winding rivers be red : 
They banish our anger forever 

When they laurel the graves of our dead, — 
I'nder the sod and the dew, 

Waiting the judgment day; 
Love and tears for the Blue, 

Tears and love for the Gray. —F. M- Finch. 



Topics 


—Tell about — 

1. What the war decided. 




2. 


luilistments and losses. 




3. 


Cost of the war. 




4. 


The public debt. 




5. 
6. 


Soldiers in prison. 

The Christian and Sanitary Commissions. 




7. 


The women of the South. 




8. 


Niitional cemeteries. 




0. 


Decoration dav. 



QUESTIONS TO BE SETTLED. 



255 



PART SIXTH. 

AFTER THE WAR FOR THE UNION. 



Chapter XLVI. 

JOHNSON'S ADMINISTRATION-1 865- 1869. 

Questions to be Settled.— On the death of Lincoln, Vice- 
President Johnson became President. Peace had been de- 
clared, but there were great questions to be settled. There 
was an immense ^var debt, and waj^s 
must be provided for its payment. 
The seceding states inust be brought 
back, and the emancipated slaves cared 
for. Some thought that the Confed- 
erate states had forfeited all rights, 
and should come in as territories. 
Others were of the opinion that they 
could come back and go on just as 
they had done before the war. These 
differences of opinion led to much controversy. 

Proclamations. — President Johnson issued proclamations 
offering pardon to all who had participated in the war, 
save certain leaders, and opening the blockaded ports of 
the South to the trade of the world. 

Slavery Abolished.— The Emancipation Proclamation had 
been issued as a w^ar measure, but it gave freedom to 




256 THE FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT. 

sla-^^es in the seceded states onl3^ To settle the question 
of slavery forever, Congress adopted a thirteenth amend- 
ment to the Constitution, by ^vhich it Avas abolished in 
all the states and territories of the Union. By the 18th 
of December (1865) the legislatures of twenty states had 
ratified this amendment, and it was declared a part of the 
Constitution. 

The Freedmen's Bureau. — The slaves who had gained their liberty were known 
as Freedmcn. They had not been taught to read or write, knew little of the mean- 
ing of a vote, and, as a race, were child-like and helpless. Many of the Freedmen 
were anxious to learn, and eager to earn their own living; but thousands were so 
ignorant and bewildered that they could not make the best use of their freedom. 

Congress, regarding the freed blacks as the \vards of the nation, established a 
Freedmen's Bureau, and placed General O. O. Howard at its head (18G5). The 
bureau undertook to protect the Freedmen in their rights, to see that they v^-ere 
provided with food and shelter, to look after the education of their children, and 
in all waj's to keep them from wrong until the3' had learned to help themselves. 
Thousands of noble, self-sacrificing men and women \vent from the North to carry 
on the work of the bureau, which performed its duties well so long as they were 
required. 

The Fourteenth Amendment.— A fourteenth amendment 
to the Constitution, making the freed slaves citizens of the 
United States, was proposed by Congress (1866), and rati- 
fied by the states in 1868. 

Reconstruction Measures. — President Johnson held that 
the states had the right to come back without any condi- 
tions; and when Congress passed reconstruction measures 
requiring them to annul their acts of secession, make void 
all debts incurred in carrying on the war, and adopt the 
amendment abolishing slavery in order to get back into 
the Union, he vetoed several of the measures, and, though 
Congress passed them over his veto, it led to much ill- 
feeling. 

Impeachment of the President. — Congress had passed a 
law forbidding the President to remove persons from office 
without consent of the Senate; but Johnson refused to 



THE OCEAN TELEGRAPH. 257 

obey, and went so far as to dismiss Edwin M. Stanton, 
the Secretary of War. This led the House of Representa- 
tives to impeach the President; that is, to bring him to 
trial before the Senate in order to have him removed frOm 
office. There was great excitement over the whole coun- 
try, but, after a long trial, the Senate voted to acquit. 

States Return to the Union. — One by one the Southern 
states returned to the Union, all but three being admitted 
in time to vote for the next president. 

Alaska and Nebraska. — The territorv^ of Alaska was pur- 
chased of Russia for $7,200,000 ; and Nebraska, the thirty- 
seventh state, was made a member of the Union the same 
year (1867). 

Alaska was the last addition to the territory of the United States. William 
H. Seward, as Secretary of State, favored the purchase; and, as most people then 
thought that the country was worthless, he was made to bear a great deal of 
ridicule. Soon it became known that its waters were alive with fish, that count- 
less seals resorted to its islands, that it had valttable forests, and large mineral 
resources. The table given below shows the original territory of the United States, 
and the additions made at different periods. (See map, page 150). 

TERRITORIAL GROWTH. 

United States in 1783 827,844 square miles. 

Louisiana purchase (including Oregon), 1803, . . . 1,171,625 " 

Florida purchase, 1819 58,680 

.\nnexation of Texas, 1845, 376,133 

Mexican cession, 1848, 545,783 

Gadsden purchase, 1853, 45,535 " 

Purchase of Alaska, 1867 577,390 



Total, 1889 3,602,990 

The Ocean Teleg-raph.— The laying of an ocean telegraph 
cable from Ireland to Newfoundland \vas one of the most 
important events of this period (1866). The success of 
the enterprise was due to C^^rus W. Field, of Ne\v York, 
who had strong faith and persevered in the work. A line 
was laid in 1858, but it soon broke, and many believed 
that it was useless to lay another. At last, after man\^ 




(25S) 



THE UNION RESTORED. 259 

difficulties, the cable was placed aboard the Great Eastern, 
and she steamed across the Atlantic, the cable unwinding 
from a reel as she went. Ocean cables are now common, 
and the news is flashed from continent to continent. 

Election of Grant. — In the presidential election of 1868, 
General Grant, the Republican candidate, was chosen over 
Horatio Seymour, nominated by the Democrats. Schuyler 
Colfax was chosen Vice-President. 



Topics.— Tell about — 


1. 


Questions to be settled. 


2. 


Proclamations. 


3. 


Slavery abolished — Thirteenth amendment, 


4. 


Fourteenth amendment. 


5. 


Reconstruction measures. 


6. 


Impeachment of the President. 


7. 


The states returning to the Union. 


8. 


Alaska and Nebraska. 


9. 


The ocean telegraph cable. 


10. 


Election of Grant. 



Chapter XLVII. 
grant's administration— 1869-1877. 

The Union Restored.— During the first 3'ear of Grant's 
administration, Virginia, Mississippi, and Texas complied 
with all the conditions imposed, and were allowed a rep- 
resentation in Congress, and for the first time since the 
Civil War began, all the states had a voice in national 
affairs — the Union was restored. 

The Two Oceans Joined.— The completion of the first of 
the great lines of railroad across the plains and moun- 
tains to the Pacific was a very important event. The 
road was built by two companies, the Central Pacific, 
working eastward from California, and the Union Pacific, 



260 THE ALABAMA CLAIMS. 

working Avestward from the Missouri River. The two 
lines met at Ogden, and the last tie was laid with great 
ceremony (May 10, 1869). It was of polished laiirel-wood 
bound with silver bands. California furnished a gold spike, 
Nevada, a silver one, and Arizona, one of iron, silver, and 
gold. As the spikes were driven in presence of a vast crowd, 
the strokes of the hammer were telegraphed all over the 
Union. The Atlantic and Pacific Oceans were now joined 
by iron bands. 

The Fifteenth Amendment.— Although the slaves had 
been declared citizens, they were not allowed to vote; and 
before the close of Johnson's term, Congress proposed a 
fifteenth amendment to the Constitution, giving the right 
of suffrage to all citizens of the United States without re- 
gard to '.'race, color, or previous condition of servitude." 
This amendment was ratified by three-fourths of the states, 
and the President declared it adopted (March 30, 1870). 

The Chicago Fire. — In October, 1871, occurred the most terrible fire known in 
the hist(jr\- of our countrj'. In the city of Chicago eighteen thousand buildings 
were consumed, two hundred million dollars' worth of property was destroyed, 
two hundred lives were lost, and one hundred thousand people were left homeless. 
The news of the disaster was telegraphed over the land, causing a great wave of 
sympathy, and before the fires had died out contributions for the stricken ones 
began to flow in from all portions of the country, the relief fund reaching a total 
of seven million dollars. 

The Alabama Claims. — Much ill-feeling existed in the 
United States because Great Britain refused to pa^' for the 
property destroyed by the Alabama and other privateers 
fitted out in her ports. But the two governments finally 
appointed commissioners, who met at Washington and 
agreed that all claims of either nation against the other 
should be submitted to a board of arbitration. The board 
met at Geneva, Switzerland, and decided that Great Brit- 
ain should pay the United States v$15,500,000 in gold. 
This was much better than to go to war. 



TROUBLE WITH THE INDIANS. 



261 




Re-Election of Grant. — In the presidential campaign of 
1872, Grant was re-nominated for President, and Henry 
Wilson, of Massachusetts, was nomi- 
nated for Vice-President by the Repub- 
licans. Horace Greeley, editor of the 
New York Tribune, was the leader of 
the Liberal Republicans and Demo- 
crats. Mr. Greeley was defeated, and 
died in less than a month, the nation 
losing one of its ablest and best men. 

Trouble with the Indians.— Early in 
Grant's second term there was trouble 
with the Modoc Indians on the southern border of Oregon. 
They had agreed to occupy a certain reservation, but re- 
fused to do so, and resisted the government forces sent to 
move them, taking refuge in old lava beds w^here they could 
hardly be reached. Men sent to treat with them were mur- 
dered. For this treachery the chiefs were tried and hanged. 
Three years later. General Custer, in command of the Sev- 
enth Cavalry, numbering about two hundred and fifty men, 
was sent to quell the Sioux Indians. He and his entire 
regiment were surrounded by the savages, and not a soul 
escaped. After fighting for a time, the Sioux with their 
chiefs. Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, escaped to Canada. 

Business Failures.— The autumn of 1873 is noted for 
its many business failures. Banks closed their doors, fac- 
tories shut down, every kind of business was at a stand- 
still, and thousands of laborers were without work. Hard 
times continued for several years. 

The Centennial Year.— To celebrate the nation's one hun- 
dredth birthda^^ (1876) an International Exposition was 
held at Philadelphia. A tract of two hundred and thirt3'- 
six acres, a part of the beautiful Fairmount Park, was 



262 



THE DISPUTED ELECTION. 



selected as the site of the cele- 
bration. "The grounds were 
covered with a native growth 
of stately trees, thickets of 
brush and wild flowers." 
Walks and drives were laid 
out, bridges were built, and 
costl}' buildings erected. The 
rare products of all nations 
were gathered, people came 
from all lands, and ten mill- 
ion visitors were registered 
during the six months of the 
Exposition. 

The Disputed Election.— 
Rutherford B. Ha3'es, Repub- 
lican, of Ohio, Samuel J. Til- 
den, Democrat, of New York, 
and Peter Cooper, nominated 
by the Indei3endent Green- 
back party, were the presi- 
dential candidates in the au- 
tumn of 1876. There was 
much excitement, and for 
some time both the Demo- 
crats and the Republicans 
claimed the election. It Avas 
said that frauds had been 
perpetrated in Oregon, South 
Carolina, Florida, and Louisi- 
ana, and Congress referred 
the matter to a committee of 
fifteen. After investigation. Ha 



HoraC3 Greeley was born in Am- 
herst, New Hampshire, February 
3, 1811. His lather was poor, and 
it was the task of Horace while a 
mere child to ride the horse to 
])loush, to pick up stones in the 
ha.T-field, to watch the oxen as they 
fed on tiie grass near the corn-field, 
on frosty autiimn mornings. He 
could read when but two j-ears 
old, and at the age of ten had 
read every book he could borrow 
in the neighborhood. He always 
carried a book in his pocket to 
read when there was a spare mo- 
ment. From the age of ten to fif- 
teen he assisted his father in clear- 
ing new land, and in other hard 
labor on a New England farm. 
When about fifteen he became an 
apprentice to the printer of a week- 
ly paper in Vermont, and soon 
learned the art of tj-pe-setting. 

In 18.31, Mr. Greeley went to New 
York to seek his fortune, reaching 
that city with only ten dollars in 
his purse, and a scanty stock of 
clothing in a bundle. He worked 
as a journeyman until 1833, when 
he began business on his own ac- 
count, with a partner, issuing the 
Morning Post, the first penny daily 
paper ever published. In 184-1, ten 
years from the time when he en- 
tered the great citj% poor and un- 
known, Mr. Greeley issued the first 
number of the New York Tribune, 
which became one of the lead- 
ing papers of the United States. 
As editor-in-chief of the Tribune, 
Mr. Greeley gained a world-wide 
fame. He filled several important 
public positions, was a public 
speaker of much note, and author 
of several works, among which are 
the following: Hints Towards Re- 
forms; Glances at Europe; History 
of the Struggle for Slavery E.xten- 
sion ; The American Conflict; and 
Recollections of a Busy Life. 



ves was declared elected. 



TROOPS AT ELECTIONS. 263 



Topics— Tell 


about — 


1. 


The Union restored. 


2. 


The two oceans joined. 


3. 


The fifteenth amendment. 


4. 


The Chicago fire. 


5. 


The .\labama claims. 


6. 


Re-election of Grant. 


7. 


Horace Greeley. 


8. 


Trouble with the Indians. 


9. 


Business failures. 


10. 


The Centennial year. 


11. 


The disputed election. 



Chapter XLVIII. 

hayes' administration— 1877-1881. 

Troops at Elections.— There was considerable ill-feeling 
in the South on account of the presence of Federal troops 
at elections. Their presence had been 
thought necessar^^ in order to secure 
a fair vote ; but one of the first acts 
of President Hayes was to withdraw 
the troops, leaving the people free to 
manage their own affairs. 

Railroad Riots.— On account of the 
continued hard times and lack of busi- 
ness, some of the railroads reduced 
the wages of those who were in their ^=^^'- 
service, and this led to "strikes" and riots. On some 
routes trains were not allowed to run, and much railroad 
property was destroyed. The militia and government 
troops were called out to quell the riots. In Pittsburgh a 
hundred men lost their lives, and there was sharp fighting 
in Chicago and at other points (1877). 




264 CHINESE LABOR. 

The Government Redeems Its Pledge.— To carrj- on the 
war required vast sums of money, and the government 
issued greenbacks, or paper money, promising to pay a dol- 
lar in gold for ever^^ paper dollar thus issued. As the 
government was pledged, this money was good, and for 
msiny years a piece of gold or silver was seldom seen in 
circulation. Government gave notice that, on the 1st of 
Januar}', 1879, it would be read3^ to redeem its pledge, or 
"resume specie pa3^ment," and on that day the banks be- 
gan to pa3^ otit both silver and gold coin, and specie, as 
it is called, again came into general use. 

At the beginning of the Civil War, the government had no money in its treasury 
and its credit was below par. Salmon P. Chase, Secretary of the Treasury, 
planned measures which enabled the countrj' to keep its armies in the field, even 
at a cost of six or seven hundred millions per annum. The people were furnished 
a currency which enabled them to jjay their debts, and every branch of industry 
was stimulated. One of the measures of permanent importance to the country 
was the establishment of the national banking system, by which all notes issvied 
were based on funded bonds of the government. This system was entirely origi- 
nated bj- Mr. Chase. 

Chinese Labor. — Chinese laborers had crossed the ocean, 
and for man^' 3'ears had been emplo\'ed in building the 
Pacific and other lines of raihva^' in California. When 
these roads were completed the\^ began to engage in other 
work, and as the^^ were willing to live on xery little, the\' 
could work for lower wages than other laborers, and thus 
crowd them out of employment. This state of things 
caused a strong feeling in California against Chinese labor, 
and a new treaty was made with China by which immi- 
gration could be controlled by the United States. 

The Telephone. — The speaking instrument called the telephone, now so generally 
used bj' business men, was first brought to public notice in 1877-78. A j-ear later, 
when what was called the Silver Bill was before Congress, every step of the jn-o- 
ceedings of that bodj- was telephoned to the Treasury Department in Washing' 
ton, and thence by telegraph to the President at the White House. This is said 
to have been the first public use of the telephone. 



ASSASSINATION OF GARFIELD. 



265 



Election of Garfield.— General James A. Garfield, of Ohio, 
and Chester A. Arthur, of New York, Republican candi- 
dates for President and Vice-President, were chosen over 
General Winfield S. Hancock, of Pennsylvania, who had 
gained distinction in the Army of the Potomac, and Will- 
iam H. English, of Indiana, the Democratic nominees. The 
National Greenback-Labor party also had candidates in 
the field, but they received no electoral votes. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. Troops at elections. 

2. Railroad riots. 

3. The government redeeming its jDledge. 

4. Chinese labor. 

5. Election of Garfield. 



Chapter XLIX. 

garfield and arthur's administration— 1881-1885. 

Assassination of Garfield.— Everything promised well for 
the administration of President Garfield. The wounds of 
the Civil War were rapidly healing, 
and all parties had confidence in the 
honesty and wisdom of the man w^ho 
stood at the head of the nation. But 
on the 2d of July, 1881, while General 
Garfield was standing in a railway 
station at Washington, he was shot 
b}-- Charles J. Guiteau, a man who had 
sought an office from him, and failed. 
The President lay upon a bed of pain 
until the 19th of September, when death came to his re- 
lief. All this time the entire nation watched for the news 
sent over the wires, and the deepest sympathy was felt by 
all classes. 





266 CIVIL SERVICE REFORM. 

Vice-President Arthur then became President, and, though 
suddenly called to this high position, he performed the du- 

r '^,,-^,^^..^^.^ -^ -^^^^ ties of his office in such a manner as 
g to win the respect of both parties. 
Railroads, Standard Time, Etc.— 
During President Arthur's term the 
Northern Pacific Railroad, and the 
great bridge connecting New York and 
Brookh'n were completed (1883) . The 
same year the principal railroads of 
the countr\^ divided the territory of 
the United States into four sections 
and established "standard time" for each. On the 21st of 
February, 1885, the Washington Monument, erected to 
the memor}' of Washington, was completed and dedicated. 
The comer-stone was laid thirty -seven A-ears before. The 
monument is five hundred and fifty-five feet high, and sev- 
enty-five feet square at the base. 

Civil Service Reform. — President Jackson thought that 
the public offices of the government should be filled by the 
political friends of the administration, and hundreds of 
well-qualified men were turned out of office by him to make 
room for part3' favorites. In this waj^ Jackson introduced 
what is known as the principle of rotation in office, and 
presidents since that time have followed his example. 

In 1871, Congress passed a law to put a stop to this 
practice, but the law became a dead letter, until Arthur 
urged a reform, and a strict civil service reform bill was 
passed by Congress (1883), under wdiich a board of ex- 
aminers is appointed to test the qualifications of all appli- 
cants. This, it w^as hoped, would lead to the selection of 
the best men, without regard to party, but the law has 
not been strictly enforced. 



ELECTION OF CLEVELAND, 



267 



Election of Cleveland.— In 1884 the Republican stand- 
ard bearers were James G. Blaine, of Maine, and General 
John A. Logan, of Illinois. The for- 
mer had gained distinction in Con- 
gress, the latter was honored as a gal- 
lant soldier. The Democratic candi- 
dates were Grover Cleveland, of New 
York, and Thomas A. Hendricks, of 
Indiana. The People's party put up 
Benjamin F. Butler, of Massachusetts, 
and A. M. West, of Mississippi. The 
Prohibition party, John P. St. John, 
of Kansas, and William Daniel, of Maryland. There was 
great excitement during the campaign, but the Democrats 
won the victory, and the party came into power for the 
first time in t wen t}^ -four years. 

Topics.— Tell about— 

1. Assassination of Garfield. 

2. Vice-President Arthur. 

3. Railroads — standard time — Washington Monument. 

4. Civil service reform. 

5. Election of Cleveland. 




Chapter L. 



CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRATION- 1885-1889. 

In his inaugural address. President Cleveland spoke in 
favor of civil service reform, and asked all to lay aside 
prejudice, and give a warm support to the government. 

Death of General Grant. — General Grant, who had 
for a long time suffered from a painful disease, died at 
Mount McGregor, New York, on the 23d of July (1886). 
Though his strength was constantly failing, he bore up 



268 LABOR ORGANIZATIONS. 

manfulh', and spent his last da^'s in completing the story 
of his life, which he Avas preparing for the press. The great 
soldier and leader of our armies was laid to rest in River- 
side Park, New York City. The President of the United 
States and officers of government, the governors of states, 
and distinguished citizens from all parts of the country 
attended the funeral to do honor to his name. 

The Anarchists. — in May (1886), a terrible riot occurred in Chicago. A large 
number of men were incited by hand-bills, and bj' speeches of foreign .\narchists 
to destroy propert3' and commit other acts of violence. In quelling the mob, 
seven policemen were killed, eleven were crippled for life, and twelve were seriously 
injured. The leading Anarchists were arrested and tried, and eight of them were 
found guilty of murder. 

Labor Strikes. — In the early part of 1886 numerous labor strikes took place. 
In manj- cases the differences between workingmen and their employers were set- 
tled by arbitration, and the strikes very soon came to an end. In other cases 
differences were not settled for a long time, and, as thousands were out of em- 
ployment, there was much suffering. In the end, the laborers were often com- 
pelled to yield in order to save their wives and children from want. 

The Eight-Hour Movement. — On the 1st of May, what is known as the eight- 
hour movement took place. It was thought that eight hours' labor should make 
a da3''s work. To help on the movement an immense meeting of the trades 
unions was held in New York; and forty thousand workmen, mostly lumber- 
men, brick-laj'ers, freight-handlers, iron-workers, and factorj- hands, went out 
on a strike, in Chicago. The labor organizations of St. Louis, Baltimore, Bos- 
ton, and other cities also made a strong movement 
to secure the same end. In manj' instances the strikes 
were brought to a close without serious trouble, but 
in others there was much difficultj' and dissatisfac- 
tion. 

Labor Organizations. — As early as 
November, 1869, Uriah S. Stephens, a 
clothing cutter of Philadelphia, formed, 
a society for the protection and im- 
provement of working people. For 
some time its name and work were 
kept a secret, but the order grew among the laborers of 
Philadelphia until nearly every trade was represented. It 
soon sprung up in Pittsburgh, and was joined by most of 




THE FISHERIES. 269 

the coal and iron workers. In 1878 a General Assembly 
of North America was formed, with a General Master Work- 
man, Terrence V. Powderly, at its head. The organization 
now extends over all parts of the country, and includes 
workers of every trade. The motto of the Knights of 
Labor is, "An injury to one is the concern of all." 

An Earthquake. — In August (1886), the shock of an earth- 
quake was felt in the United States from the Mississippi to 
the Atlantic. It was most severe in Charleston, South 
Carolina, where yawning cracks were opened in the earth, 
and many buildings were thrown down, crushing the ter- 
rified people as the}' fled from their homes. The shock con- 
tinued at intervals for thirtj'-six hours. Again, as in the 
case of Chicago, helping hands were extended, and ex- 
pressions of S3'mpathy came from all directions. 

The Fisheries.— The question of the fisheries along the 
coast of Canada caused a good deal of trouble. By the 
provisions of an expired treaty between the United States 
and Great Britain, American fishermen were not allowed 
to catch, cure, or dry fish within three miles of the Cana- 
dian coast. "They were permitted to enter bays and har- 
bors only for the purpose of shelter, of repairing damages, 
of purchasing wood, and of procuring water." The Cana- 
dians seized a number of American fishing vessels, charged 
with violations of this old law, and, in several instances, 
fines wtre imposed. This caused much feeling in the United 
States, and, at length, an international commission was 
appointed to settle the difficulty, but the treaty framed by 
this commission was rejected bj^ the Senate, and no settle- 
ment was made during Cleveland's administration. 

The Tariff Question.— The tariff question again became 
a leading one. From the early days of the government 
statesmen have differed in opinion on this subject. Some 



270 THE TARIFF QUESTION. 

have favored making duties on foreign products high enough 
to protect the manufacturers of Hke products at home. 
Those who held this view were said to favor a "protective 
tariff." Others would levj' a tariff sufficient to pay the 
expenses of government — a tariff for revenue only. Others 
still were in favor of free trade with all nations. " Buy 
where you can buy the cheapest," was their motto. 

For some time the tariff had remained so high that the 
revenue had accumulated until there was a large sum h'ing 
idle in the treasury. The people demanded a reduction of 
the tariff, and this became the chief question in the presi- 
dential campaign of 1888, at the close of which General 
Benjamin Harrison, Republican, was elected over Grover 
Cleveland. The question of temperance also received much 
attention, and a candidate for the presidency was nomi- 
nated by the Prohibition partj', but he did not succeed in 
carrying any of the states. 

Topics.— Tell of— 

1. Death of General Grant. 

2. The Anarchists. 

3. Labor strikes. 

4. The eight-hour movement. 

5. Labor organizations. 

6. Earthquake at Charleston. 

7. The fisheries. 

8. The tariff question. 

9. Election of Harrison. 



THE ONE HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY. 



271 



Chapter LI. 




BENJAMIN HARRISON'S ADMINISTRATION— 1889-1893. 

The One Hundredth Anniversary.— The celebration of the 
one hundredth anniversary of Washington's inauguration 
as President of the United States took 
place on the 30th of April (1889). 
Throughout the land the people as- 
sembled in groves and halls to honor 
the name of Washington and com- 
memorate the great event; but the 
grandest celebration was in Ne\v York, 
where, as we have learned, Washington 
was inaugurated. 

On the 29th of April, President Har- 
rison v^ent from Washington to Elizabeth, New Jersey, by 
rail, where he embarked on the United States steamer Dis- 
patch, and was taken to New York over the very route 
along which Washington had been rowed a hundred years 
before. Ships-of-war, revenue cutters, steam yachts, passen- 
ger steamers, ferryboats and tugboats — all gay ^vith flags 
— lay in line along the route; and the bay of Ne"w York 
was alive with vessels of all descriptions. 

Off the foot of Wall Street the Dispatch anchored, and 
the President was rowed ashore in a barge manned by a 
crew of shipmasters from the Marine Society of New York. 
The crew that rowed Washington to the same spot were 
members of the same society. On landing, the President 
was received by William G. Hamilton, the grandson of 
the great statesman and friend of Washington, Alexander 
Hamilton. 





.^* *^^ 



^ cw^.^-^^^^^ ^,;i pifi';;/. 



A GREAT DISASTER. 273 

On the 30th of April, an oration was deHvered by Chaun- 
cey M. Depew, and a poem \vritten by Whittier was read ; 
but the great event of the day was the miHtary parade. 
More than forty -six thousand men, representing the army, 
the navy, and the volunteer militia of many states, "were 
in line. This splendid column, in command of General 
Schofield, marched up Broadway and Fifth Avenue under 
triumphal arches, and was reviewed by the President. All 
New York was decorated with flags and bunting, and over 
a million people witnessed the parade. 

On May 1st, a civic and industrial parade took place. 
The leading societies, the various trades, and the public 
schools formed a procession numbering over forty thou- 
sand, and the President reviewed this also, bringing the 
three days' pageant to a close. 

A Great Disaster.— On the 31st of May, in the valley of 
the Conemaugh, in Western Pennsylvania, occurred one of 
the most terrible disasters in the history of our country. 
Rains had already swollen the streams, when a dam which 
held back the waters of the South Fork of the Conemaugh, 
forming a large reservoir, gave wa^^, and the flood rushed 
down the narrow valley, sweeping bridges, houses, churches, 
hotels, factories, warehouses, mills, and railroad trains in 
its course. Thousands of men, women, and children, whose 
homes were in the city of Johnstown and in villages along 
the Conemaugh, were engulfed in the waters, or buried in 
the ruins, which, at the stone bridge below Johnstown, cov- 
ered acres of ground. For weeks following the disaster 
large forces of men were seeking and bur>'ing the dead. 
The number of lives lost, though not accurately known, 
was not far from six thousand. 

The sympathy of the whole country and of all civilized 
nations Avas roused by this calamity; and food, clothing. 



274 HEROES OF THE CONEMAUGH. 

and money were freeh' and promptly given to relieve the 
sufferers, some of Avhom had lost their all. 

Heroes of the Conemaugh. — ^^The famous ride of Paul Revere finds a parallel in 
that of Daniel Periton, a messenger Avho rode do\Yn the Conemaugh Valley 
shouting out ^vamings to the inhabitants, until himself overtaken and engulfed 
by the terrible vi-all of waters. Still grander was the calm heroism of Mrs. H. M. 
Ogle, operator of the Western Union telegraph office, who, notwithstanding re- 
peated notices of the approaching danger, stood by the instrument with unflinch- 
ing loj-alty and undaunted fearlessness, sending words of warning to those in 
danger in the valley belo^v. When everj' station in the path of the coming torrent 
had been warned, Mrs. Ogle ^v^red her companions at South Fork: "This is mj' 
last message." She went down in the waters, but historj' will preserve h ^r name. 

,Write it in lines of light, "She died for men!" 

She could not be disloyal to her trust ; 
She -would not leave her \vires — most needed then 
To warn and save. O, woman true and just ! 

When through the city doomed a horseman dashed 
Shouting, "The dam! the dam is broken! Flee!" 

And with mad speed the oncoming \vaters crashed. 
She kept her place: "Warned must the valley be!" 

— Emma. Rood Tuttle. 

THE RIDER OF CONEMAUGH. 



Daniel Periton knew that his doom was nigh, 

Yet never once faltered his clarion cry ; 

The blood ran off from the good steed's side; 

Over him hung the white crest of the tide ; 

His hair felt the touch of the ogre's breath, 

The spray on his cheek was the cold kiss of death ; 

Beneath him the horse 'gan to tremble and droop — 

He saw the pale rider who sat on the croup ! 

But clear over all rang his last warning shout, 

"To the hills! To the hills! For the waters are out!" 

Then the tide reared its head and leaped vengefully down 

On the horse and his rider in fated Johnstown ! 

That horse was a hero, so poets still say. 

That brought the good news of the treaty to Aix ; 

And the steed is immortal which carried Revere, 

Through the echoing night \vith his message of fear ; 

And the one that bore Sheridan into the fraj", 

From Winchester town, "twenty miles away;" 

But none of these merits a nobler lay 

Than young Daniel Periton's raw-boned bay 

That raced down the valley of Conemaugh, 

With the tide that rushed through the dam of straw. 

• * * • — Tourgee. 



TERRITORIAL GROWTH. 275 

New States. — Near the close of Cleveland's term of office, 
Congress made provision for the admission of North Da- 
kota, South Dakota, Montana, and Washington. These 
territories, having fully complied with all the conditions 
imposed, were formally declared members of the Union by 
proclamations issued by President Harrison (November, 
1889). On the meeting of Congress in December following, 
the Senate decided by lot that Washington should be the 
thirty-ninth, South Dakota the fortieth. North Dakota the 
forty-first, and Montana the forty-second state. 

Topics.— Tell about — 

1. The one hundredth anniYersar3^ 

2. A great disaster. 

3. Heroes of the Conemaugh. 

4. New states. 



Chapter LII. 
growth of the country. 

Territorial Growth.— When Washington was inaugurated, 
the Mississippi formed the western boundary of the United 
States. On the south, Florida and that part of Louisiana 
east of the Misisssippi belonged to a foreign power. The 
area of the new Republic was but little over eight hundred 
thousand square miles. Our country now stretches from 
the Gulf to the Great Lakes, from ocean to ocean, and in- 
cludes Alaska, a vast realm, besides. Its area is over three 
and a half million square miles. 

Population.— The first census, taken in 1790, gave less 
than four million inhabitants, most of whom occupied a 
narrow belt along the Atlantic. The whole region west of 
the Alleghanies was a wilderness, with a few trading posts 
and scattered settlements, mostly south of the Ohio, in 



276 RESOURCES. 

Kentucky and Tennessee. Philadelphia had but forty-two 
thousand inhabitants ; New York, thirty-three thousand ; 
Boston, eighteen thousand; Baltimore, thirteen thousand; 
and Providence, six thousand. 

The site of Chicago was a flat, unbroken prairie without 
a white inhabitant ; Cincinnati was a log fort, with a few 
huts; St. Louis, a mere trading post held by a foreign 
power; New Orleans, founded in 1718, had over five thou- 
sand people owing allegiance to a monarch of Europe. It 
was the only city in the Mississippi Valley. San Francisco, 
now the metropolis of the Pacific Coast, did not receive 
its present name until nearly half the years of the nine- 
teenth century had been told. 

The population of the United States is now over sixty 
millions. The Mississippi Valley contains millions of homes ; 
the Rockj' Mountain region is rapidly filling up, and three 
prosperous states are found on the Pacific Coast. In 1880, 
thirty-five cities had over fifty thousand inhabitants each; 
twenty of these had over one hundred thousand ; seven, 
over, five hundred thousand; and one, over a million in- 
habitants. 

Resources. — A century ago the mineral and other natu- 
ral resources of the country were undeveloped. Only char- 
coal iron was produced, and not so much of that as thirty 
thousand tons yearly. Twenty years later the product 
was only fifty-three thousand tons, not so much as either 
one of several furnaces now turns out every year. Stone 
coal had not come into use, petroleum, or coal oil, was un- 
known, gas was not used for fuel or light, and most of the 
salt was made b3' boiling sea-water, though in 1787 it 
was first made from the springs at Syracuse, New York, at 
the rate of ten bushels per da^^ Nothing could have been 
known of the vast deposits of coal and iron now so exten- 



MANUFACTURES. 277 

sively mined in different portions of the country then unex- 
plored; and it was near the middle of the century before 
any one dreamed of the treasures of gold, silver, and other 
metals hidden in the Rocky Mountains and in the regions 
be\'ond. 

Ag"riculture. — The first iron plow was not patented until 
1787, and it is said that some farmers refused to use it 
because they feared it would poison the ground. Many 
years passed before the steel plow, the horse hoe, reaping 
and threshing machines were invented and brought into 
general use. The farms of those early days were small, 
were tilled with great labor, and the entire wheat crop of 
the thirteen colonies could not have equaled the surplus ex- 
ported from either of the Dakotas. 

The first shipment of cotton to England, only eight bags, 
was made in 1784. The country has since raised more 
than seven m-illion bales in a year. Market-gardening and 
fruit-raising on the Atlantic seaboard, the immense com and 
wheat fields of the Mississippi Valley, the stock ranches 
on the plains and in the mountain valleys from Canada 
to Texas, the magnificent orchards, groves, and vineyards 
of the Pacific States, are illustrations of the triumphs of 
enteriDrise in different fields of labor. 

Manufactures. — A centurj^ ago, the spinning-wheel and 
the hand-loom were found in every farm-house ; wool card- 
ing, spinning, and weaving occupied a large part of the 
house\vife's time. Washington, when addressing the first 
Congress, w^ore a woolen suit presented by a factor)^ es- 
tablished the preceding year. The first carpet factory was 
built some years later. In our day the factories of the 
country have worked up more than one thousand million 
pounds of cotton, and four hundred million pounds of 
wool, in a year. 



278 LA BOR — WAGES. 

American pressed glass, now found in ever\^ household, is 
an invention of the last sixt3^ 3^ears, and silk manufacture 
in this country' is not yet fift\' years old. The paper of a 
hundred j^ears ago would hardh^ be thought fit for use in 
our times, and rubber goods of an^^ description were un- 
known in the days of our fathers. The manufacture of 
boots, shoes, clothing, iron, and ^voolen goods by machin- 
ery is due to inventions since 1800. Before that date, and 
for man}^ years afterwards, nearly ever\'thing was made by 
hand ; now, niachiner3^ of every description has taken the 
place of hand labor, and thousands of articles unknown 
fifty years ago are manufactured and have come into gen- 
eral use. 

Labor — Wag'es. — The greatness of a country is best shown 
by the condition of its laboring classes. Down to the 
close of the Civil War a large portion of the labor of the 
country was performed bj^ slaves ; now, every laborer is a 
free man. This is an immense gain. In Massachusetts, a 
century ago, masons received sixt3" -seven cents a day; car- 
penters, fifty -two cents ; blacksmiths, seven tA^ cents ; and or- 
dinary laborers without trades, thirty cents. In 1800, on 
the Penns3dvania canals, diggers Avere paid $6 a month 
from Maj^ to November, and $5 a month from November 
to May. From 1793 to 1800, hod-carriers, mortar-mixers, 
diggers, and choppers, who labored on the public buildings 
and graded the streets of Washington, received $70 a j'car, 
the hours of work being from sunrise to sunset. 

Wages at Albany and New York were forty cents a day ; 
at Lancaster, Penns^dvania, from $8 to $10 a month; 
elsewhere in the state workmen ^vere glad to get $6 in 
summer and $5 in winter. At Baltimore, common labor- 
ers were paid thirty to thirty-five cents a day ; in Virginia, 
white men, emploA^ed by the 3'ear, Avere given sixteen 



TRANSPORTATION. 279 

pounds in currency, worth $53.28. Out of this small sum 
the workman, with his wife's help, had to maintain his 
family. Within the memory of many now living, able- 
bodied farm laborers were paid from $8 to $10 a month 
through the season; hired girls, from fifty cents to $1 a 
week; carpenters, from $1 to $1.50 a day; male teachers 
in district schools, from $12 to $15 a month; female 
teachers, from seventy-five cents to $1 a \veek. 

In Boston, a century ago, pork was quoted at sixteen 
cents per pound, flour at $8.16 per barrel, corn at seventy- 
six cents per bushel, and ham at twenty cents a pound. 
Calico cost fifty-eight cents a j^ard; cotton cloth, eight3'- 
eight cents ; tow cloth, thirty cents ; buckram, twenty cents, 
and broadcloth, $2.70. Stockings were $1.35 a pair; but- 
tons, from one to five shillings a dozen, and corded Nan- 
keen breeches, $5.50 a pair. Sugar was from fifteen to 
twenty-two cents a pound. 

When compared with present wages and prices, these 
figures show improvement in the condition of laborers. 
Although there are many w^rongs to be righted, many bur- 
dens to be taken from their shoulders, the laboring men 
of the nation have more comfortable homes, are better fed 
and clothed than in the early daj^s of the Republic. 

Transportation. — In the early days there were neither 
railroads nor steamboats. Away from the streams, farm 
products and merchandise 'were conveyed in wagons, over 
rough roads, at great expense. This made settlement diffi- 
cult and farming unprofitable, save in the vicinity of navi- 
gable waters. In 1830, there were but twent3'-three miles 
of railroad in the United States. Trunk lines now stretch 
from ocean to ocean, all parts of the country are joined 
by iron bands, and steamers everywhere ploAv our lakes 
and rivers. The rail-car and the steamboat made the set- 



280 MODES OF TRAVEL. 

tlement of the Mississippi Valley and the vast region to 
the Avest comparativelj' easy. Steam moves the products 
of our farms, our orchards, our forests, our mines, and our 
manufactories. It has entirely changed the mode of livinsf. 

Modes of Travel.— Footmen \yith packs on their backs 
are no longer seen setting out for the far AVest ; the Metho- 
dist minister and the learned judge no longer make their 
circuits on horseback ; the bride of to-day does not ride to 
hei new home mounted behind her husband on a horse. 
The one-horse chaise, \yith its heavy wooden springs, has 
disappeared, and the lumbering stage coach in which Wash- 
ington made long joume3"S is seen only in sparsely settled 
regions. The emigrant has left his huge covered Avagon 
behind, a shell on the strand, and is speeding on the cars 
to his new home. 

Until within the last thirty 3'ears few people could afford 
to make long journcA's. Now, everybody travels. Friends 
visit friends near and far ; pleasure-seekers and health-seek- 
ers crowd the summer and winter resorts, borne thither 
by palace cars. Men of business from all parts of the coun- 
try are seen at the centers of trade. Men and w^omen from 
homes far apart are gathered in conventions to discuss 
great questions in which all have an interest. Every 3'ear 
the people of the different sections of our country are becom- 
ing better acquainted ; prejudice is giving way ; the bonds 
of friendship and of trade are being strengthened ; and the 
walls which have separated the East from the West, the 
North from the South, are crumbling. The Union is grow- 
ing stronger. To the railroad, the steamboat, the tele- 
graph, and the telephone we are mainly indebted for this 
new order of things. 

Post-offices. — When Benjamin Franklin resigned the posi- 
tion of postmaster -general, in the fall of 1776, the whole 



EDUCATION AND LITERATURE. 281 

number of post-ofRces was seven t3^-five. There were but five 
mails a week between New York and Philadelphia, and 
but three in summer and two in winter between New York 
and Boston. The entire length of postal routes "was 
eighteen hundred and seventj'-five miles. In 1816 the rates 
of letter postage were fixed at six and a quarter cents, 
ten cents, eighteen and three-quarter cents, and twenty- 
five cents, according to distance, and four times these 
rates if the letter weighed over an ounce. At the pres- 
ent time there are over fifty thousand post-offices, and the 
total length of routes is over three hundred and sixty 
thousand miles. 

Education and Literature. — Our fathers were believers in 
the education of the people, and the log school-house be- 
came a necessary part of every settlement. Academies, 
seminaries, and colleges were founded even in the early days 
when the colonies were poor. The common school system 
of New York was established in 1795. The Ordinance of 
1787 set apart section sixteen in every township for the 
support of schools. In 1848, section thirty-six was also 
set aside, so that the newer states have two school sec- 
tions in every township. In all, over one hundred and 
forty million acres of land have been devoted to school 
purposes in the different states. 

In 1880, there were in the United States 225,880 public 
schools, attended by 6,276,398 pupils. Since that time, 
there has been a large increase in the number of schools 
and pupils, especially in the newer states and territories, 
and in the South, where the work of educating the children 
of the blacks is being carried forward with commendable 
energy. In addition to the common schools, schools of law, 
medicine, and theology, there were, in 1880, three hundred 
and sixty-four colleges and universities. 



282 PHILANTHROPIC AND REFORM WORK. 

In coloaial times there were few American books, few li- 
braries, and hundreds of homes were without books. The 
school-books used even fifty years ago would have a strange 
and forbidding appearance to-da3\ There were no beauti- 
fully illustrated readers, geographies, or histories, such as 
the great publishing houses are now sending out by thou- 
sands. Books of nearly every description have multiplied, 
and they are now brought within the reach of all classes. 
At the beginning of the Revolution there were but thirty- 
seven newspapers in the colonies. In 1880, there w^ere 
11,314 newspapers and periodicals, reaching millions of 
homes. The census of 1890 will give a much larger number. 

Philanthropic and Reform Work.— The spirit of the peo- 
ple is shown in the large number of associations designed 
to aid the poor and unfortunate of every class. Hospitals 
and asylums are multiplying in all the cities, and schools 
for defectives are supported in the several states. The spirit 
of reform has extended to prisons and insane asylums, and 
the treatment of the inmates of these institutions is much 
more humane than formerly. Organizations designed to 
promote temperance, to keep alive the spirit of patriotism, 
to guard the interests of labor, are found everywhere, and 
there is a growing desire to elevate the moral condition of 
mankind, to bring in the reign of peace and good-will. 

Topics.- 



Tell 1 


about — 


1. 


Territorial growth. 


2. 


Population. 


3. 


Resources. 


4. 


Agriculture. 


5. 


Manufactures. 


6. 


Labor — wages. 


7. 


Transportation. 


8. 


Modes of travel — Post-offices. 


9. 


Education and literature. 


10. 


Philanthropic and reform work, 



TEST EXERCISES. 



283 



TOPICS FOR REVIEW. 

Historic Names. — Tell what you can of the persons whose names are 
given below: 



Lincoln, 205-245. 
Gen. Scott, 206,209, 
G'n. Beauregard, 206, 217 
Maj. Anderson, 206. 
John B. Flovd, 207. 
Davis, 207, 236, 245. 
McClellan,209-'21-'4-'42 
Gen. Rooccrans, 209,225. 
Gen. McDowell, 209. 
Gen. Baker, 212. 
Gen. Lvon, 212. 
J. C. Fremont, 212,226. 
Gen. Halleck, 212. 
Mason and Slidell, 215. 
Gen. Grant, 217-245,259- 
Com.Foote,217 [262,'67 
Gen. A. S. Johnston, 217. 
Gen. Buell, 217,225. 
Adm. Farragut,219,241 . 
Gen. Butler,219, 239,267 
Gen. Burnside, 219,228. 
Com.Goldsborough,220. 
Lieut. Worden, 221. 
Capt. Ericsson, 221. 
J.E.Johnston 222, '36, '43 
Gen. Lee, 222-244. 
Gen. Jackson, 222-228. 
Gen. Shields, 223. 
Gen. Pope, 223. 



Gen. Sherman, 225-243. 
Com. Porter, 225,235. 
Gen. Siblev, 226. 
Gen. Hooker, 228. 
Gen. Meade, 229, 236. 
Gen. Pickett, 229-231. 
Gen. Pemberton, 232-'3. 
Gen. Banks, 233-'5. 
Gen. Thomas, 233-237. 
Adm. Dupont, 234. 
Col. Bailey, 235. 
Gen. Forrest, 236. 
Gen. Hood, 237. 
Gen. Sheridan, 239. 
Gen. Early, 239. 
Capt. Semmes, 241. 
Capt. Winslow, 241. 
A. Johnson, 242, '55-'6. 
Gen. Pendleton, 242. 
Gen. Gilmore, 242. 
Gen. Hardee, 243. 
Gen. Terry, 243. 
Gen. Warren, 244. 
J. W. Booth, 244. 
Col. Pritchard, 245. 
Dorothea L. Dix, 251. 
Mary A. Livermore, 251 
Jane'C. Hoge, 251. 
Mary J. Safford, 252. 



Cordelia A. Harvey. 252. 
Marv A. Bickerdvke,252. 
Gen.'Howard, 256. 
W. H. Seward, 257. 
Cyrus W. Field, 257. 
Horatio Sevmour, 259. 
Schuyler Colfax, 259. 
Henry Wilson, 261. 
Horace Greelev, 261-262. 
Gen. Custer, 261. 
R. B. Haves, 262-263. 
S.J. Tilden, 263. 
Peter Cooper, 262. 
Salmon P. Chase, 264. 
J. A. Garfield, 265. 
C. A. Arthur, 265-266. 
Gen. W. S. Hancock, 265. 
W. H. English, 265. 
J. G. Blaine, 267. 
Gen. Logan, 267. 
Grover Cleveland, 267, 70 
T. A. Hendricks, 267. 
J. P. St. John, 267. 
U. S. Stephens, 268. 
Benj. Harrison, 270-272. 
W. G. Hamilton, 271. 
Chauncey M.Depew,272. 
Daniel Periton, 273. 
Mrs. H. M. Ogle, 273. 



Historic Places. — Locate the places named, and tell what you can o 
the events with which they were connected : 



Fort Pickens, 205. 
Fort Sumter, 205-'6,242. 
Harper's Ferrv, 207. 
Baltimore, 208. 
Arlington Heights, 208 
Alexandria, 208. 
Big Bethel, 209. 
Bull Run, 209-223. 
Ball's Bluft; 212. 
Wilson's Creek, 212. 
Hatteras Inlet, 212. 
Pt. Royal Entrance, 212. 
Forts Henrv and Donald- 
son, 217." 
New Orleans, 219. 



Shiloh-PittsburghLand- 

ing, 217. 
Hampton Roads, 220. 
Yorktown, 222. 
Williamsburg, 222. 
Fair Oaks, 222. 
Shenandoah Vallev,222, 
Malvern Hills,223' [239. 
Antietam, 223. 
Fredericksburg, 224. 
luka and Corinth, 225. 
Vicksburg, 225,232. 
Murfreesboro, 225. 
Mankato, 226. 
Chancellorsville, 228. 



Gettysburg, 229. 
Port Hudson, 233. 
Chickamauga, 233. 
Chattanooga, 233. 
Orchard Knob, 234. 
Lookout Mountain, 234. 
Alissionarv Ridge, 234. 
Charleston, 234. 
Fort Pillow, 236. 
Atlanta, 236. 
Nashville, 237. 
Rapidan, 238. 
Spottsvlvania, 238. 
Cold Harbor, 238. 
Petersburs:, 239. 



284 TEST EXERCISES. 



Mobile, 241. ' Belle Isle, 248. Pittsburgh, 263. 

Richmond, 244. Alaska, 257. Mount McGrej^or, 267. 

.\ppomatto.\, C. H.,244. O.tfden, 260. Elizabeth, N. J., 271. 

Macon, 245. Chicairo, 260, 263. Concmaugh, 272. 

.\ndcrsonYille, 248. Philadelphia, 261. 

General Topics. — Tell what A'OU can of the following: 

Chapter XL. — Lincoln's Administration. XLI. — Eventsof 1862. XLII. 
—Events of 1863. XLIIL— Events of 1864. XLIV.— Close of the War, 
1865. XLV.— Other Matters Relating to the War. XLVL— Johnson's Ad- 
ministration, 1865-1869. XLVII.— Grant's Administration, 1S69-1877. 
XLVin.— Hayes' Administration, 1877-1881. XLI X.— Garfield and Ar- 
thur's Administration, 1881-1885. L. — Cleveland's .\dministration. 1885- 
1889. LL — Benjamin Harrison's Administration, 1889-1893. LIL — 
Growth of the Countrv. 



TEST QUESTIONS. 285 



TEST OUESTIONvS AND EXERCISES. 

The qiiestions and exercises that follow \vill stimulate thovijjht, deepen the les- 
sons which histo. y is expected to teach, and lead to further research. They should 
be given to the class from day to day as the subjects to ^Yhich they relate come up 
for study. Answers should not be required xintil pupils have had ample time for re- 
flection — to look the matter up. The wise teacher will not fail to lengthen the list, 
to test his pupils at every step 

1. — What portions of the earth ^vere known to the people of Europe 
when Coknnbus set out on his first voyage ? 

2. — Before the days of Columbus, why had people learned so little of the 
geography of the earth ? 

3. — Name some inventions which did much to make men more familiar 
with the geography of the earth. 

4. — What goods do the people of the United States receive from the East 
Indies, China, and Japan ? 

5. — On the map or globe, trace the principal routes by which goods are 
brought from the Indies. 

6. — What important events took place on a daj^ which some people re- 
gard as unlucky ? 

7. — State what object each of the leading discoverers and explorers had 
in view. 

8. — Name the discoverers and explorers who foimd what thej^ were seek- 
ing. 

9. — Hov^ man3' routes were there to India after the discover3' of a new- 
route by Da Gama ? Which was the longer ? The cheaper ? 

10. — Name the discoverers and explorers who appear most worthy of 
high honor. 

11. — How many years from the discovery of San Salvador to the settle- 
ment of Jamestown ? 

12. — How man\' 3'ears from the coming of the Pilgrims to the coming of 
Oglethorpe ? 

13. — How raan^' A-ears from the settlement of Jamestown to the settle- 
ment of Quebec ? 

14-. — What right had the people of Europe to lands occupied b\' the In- 
dians ? 

15. — What is meant by " the right of discovery ? " 

16. — Name the colonial leaders who took pains to pay the Indians for 
their lands. 

17. — Give the origin of the name of each of the thirteen colonies. 

18. — Which colonies were founded by men who had a noble end in view-? 

19. — Why were all the earh' settlements near the seashore or on naviga- 
ble rivers ? 

20. — .\mong the colonial leaders, whom do you most admire ? Why ? 

21. — In which colonies was religious freedom allowed to all ? 

22. — In which colonies were the people allowed to hold assemblies for 
making their own laws ? 

23. — Which colonies took the most pains to establish schools and col- 
leges ? 

24. — What colleges now in existence were founded in colonial days ? 

25. — Were the Indians injured or benefited b\' dealing with their white 
neighbors ? In what wa3' ? 



286 TEST QUESTIONS. 

26. — Why was slavery more profitable in the southern colonies than in 
the northern ? 

27. — Why did many villages spring up in some colonies and few in 
others .■' 

28. — Name some of the first articles exported by the several colonies. 

29. — Why were slaves not taught to read and write ? 

30. — Were the jjunishments in colonial days more or less severe than the 
punishments in these times ? 

31. — What sports were common in the southern colonies, which were un- 
known in New England ? 

32. — What two classes of Frenchmen explored the region of the Great 
Lakes and the Mississippi Valley' ? 

33.— What nation took great pains to convert the Indians? 

34. — Why did the Indians like the French better than thcA' liked the 
English ? 

35. — On what ground did the French claim the region drained b^- the St. 
Lawrence and the Mississippi? 

36. — What, besides " discover}'," was needed to hold possession of a 
country in those days ? 

37. — What natural boundaries separated the settlements of the English 
from the settlements of the French? 

3S. — What is indicated by the names Detroit, Vincennes, Kaskaskia, St. 
Louis, and New Orleans, found on the map, jKige 136? 

39. — What states are now included in the territory surrendered by the 
French at the close of the French and Indian War ? ( Sec map, pnge 87. ) 

40. — Whv was there more of the spirit of freedom in America than in 
England before the Revolution ? 

41.— Why did England wish to restrict manufactures in her own colo- 
nies ? 

42. — Does our government lay duties on exports ? 

43. — Was it right that the colonists should be taxed by the mother 
country ? 

44.— What is meant by, " Taxation without representation is tyranny-? " 

45. — What is meant by, " Every man's house is his castle ? " 

46. — What were stamps? Have stamps been used by our own govern- 
ment? 

47.— How many unions of the colonies had been attempted before the 
Revohition ? 

4S.— In what way had the long French and Indian War prepared the 
colonists for the Revolution ? 

49. — Name some of the things said in the Declaration of Independence. 

50. — Why do we celebrate the Fourth of July ? 

51._\Vhat is it to be a patriot? Name the most noted patriots of the 
Revolutionar\' period. 

52.— What Was it to be a tory in those days ? 

53.— Has the Declaration of Independence been changed since the days 
of '76 ? 

54.— Is the Constitution the same as when adopted ? 
55.— In what liattles of the Revolution were the patriots victorious? 
56.— What is meant by a "decisive battle ? " What decisive battles were 
fought ? 

57. — What is treason ? 

58.— Was Major Andre a bad man? Why did not the kind-hearted 
Washington save Andre ? 



TEST QUESTIONS. 287 

59. — What may the United States government do which a state govern- 
ment ma\' not do ? 

60. — Are all men, women, and children bom in this country citizens ? 

61. — Which was stronger, the government under the Articles of Confeder- 
ation, or under the Constitution ? Why ? 

62. — Name the most important invention of the eighteenth century. 

63. — Before the Revolution, how v^'ere the churches svipported ? 

64. — Whv^ arc churches not supported bj' our government ? Are churches 
and church property ta.xed ? 

65. — What is meant by a strong central government ? 

66. — Why did the Democrats, in Jefferson's day, fear a strong central gov- 
ernment ? 

67. — Wh^' was the possession of the entire Mississippi River of great im- 
portance to the United States ? 

68. — What states have been formed out of the Louisiana purchase ? (See 
map, page 150.) 

69. — In which of the territorial acquisitions is your state situated ? 

70. — What is meant by " claiming the right of search ? " 

71.— With what great power was England contending at the time she 
was impressing American seamen ? 

72. — What great advantages grew out of the War of 1812 ? 

73. — What manufacturing city sprung up soon after the War of 1812 ? 

74. — Why did the people of New England oppose the war ? 

75. — How does a protective tariff help home manufactures ? 

76. — What is the difference between a " privateer " and a " pirate ? " 

77. — What is meant by the " era of good feeling ? " 

78. — Why did the people of New England engage in manufacturing, the 
people of the Soixth in cotton-planting, the people of the West in grain- 
raising and stock-growing ? 

79. — What is a patent, and how is an inventor benefited by it ? 

80. — Whv' did the cotton-gin, the spinning-jennv, and the power-loom 
make men look more favorabh' upon slavery ? 

81.— Had the people of the North any interest in slaverv since its aboli- 
tion in the Northern States ? 

82. — How many of the presidents have been from the South ? 

83. — Which state has been cahed the " Mother of Presidents ? " 

84. — What did Jackson mean by saying, "To the victors belong the 
spoils?" 

85. — Should competent men be removed from office to make room for 
political favorites ? 

86. — What is the object of the " Civil Service " law ? 

87. — How was it that new states south of the Ohio had slaves, while 
those north had none ? 

88.— Why were the people of South Carolina opposed to the tariff? 

89. — Why were Garrison and his followers called Abolitionists? 

90.— Why were Abolitionists mobbed at the South ? 

91.— In what direction is immigration moving to-day? Along what 
lines of railroad ? 

92.— How was the present territorry of the United States obtained ? 
(See map, page 150. ) 

93. — Who were the great statesmen of the first half of this centurv- ? 
Who are the leading statesmen of to-da_v ? 

94. — Why was Fremont called the Pathfinder ? 

95. — How man}' modes of travel are represented in the picture on page 164? 



288 TEST (2UESTIOXS. 

96. — Name some of the poems of Whittier ; of Bryant ; of Lon.u^fellow; of 
Holmes; of Poe. Name some of the works of Cooper; of Hawthorne; of 
Emerson ; of Bancroft ; of Prescott. Which of these poems and works have 
A'ou read ? 

97. — What question has been the greatest cause of trouble to our states- 
men ? When did the trouble beijin ? 

98. — State whether Abraham Lincoln bore anv ill-will toward the people 
of the South. 

Q9. On the part of the government, was the Civil War waged for the 
purpose of freeing the slaves, or saving the Union ? 

100. — Why was the freeing of the slaves called a " war measure ? " 

101. — What questions were settled by the Civil War? 

102. — What is meant by " Reconstruction measures ? " 

103. — How many constitutional amendments are there? 

104-. — What is meant by the exjircssion, " Impeachment of the President?" 

105. — What is meant by the " Centennial j'car ? " 

106. — What formed the western boundary of the United States when 
Washington became president ? 

107. — How many square miles did our countr3^then contain ? (See table, 
page 257.) 

108. — What additions have been made to our territory since that time ? 

109.— How many states at the time of Washington's inauguration ? 
How manv now ? 

110.— What was the population of the United States in 1790 ? In 1880 ? 
(See page 293. ) 

111. — In 1790, ^vhat cities had over twenty thousand inhabitants ? 

112. — Look in your geography and find what cities now have a larger 
population than New York had in 1790. 

113. — Where were the principal settlements in 1790? Where are they 
to-daj' ? 

114. — Write a list of inventions since 1800. 

115. — Name the chief means by which transportation has been made 
rapid and easy. 

116. — In how many ways are \ve benefited by rapid and easy trans- 
portation ? 

117. — Could the West have been settled without railroads ? 

lis. — Name someof the inventions that have enabled the farmer to raise, 
secure, and market large crops of grain. 

119.— Xame some inventions that have lessened the labor of the house- 
keei^er. 

120. — Xame some inventions that have helped to build up large manufac- 
ttiring centers. 

121.— What inventions have served to bring all parts of the world near 
together ? 

122.— What inventions have multiplied books, newspapers, and maga- 
zines ? 

123. — How have the people of the United States been benefited by the 
use of stone coal ? 

124.— Make a list of the great inventions that have come into general 
use within the last century; within the last fifty years; within the last 
twenty-five years. 

125.— Make a list of articles used in your school-room which were not in 
the school-room of the olden time. 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 



289 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 



1492. 
1497. 
1498. 



1512. 
1513. 
1519. 
1524. 
1534. 
1539. 
1562. 
1565. 
1577. 
1607. 
1608. 
1609. 
1614. 
1619. 
1620. 
1623. 
1630. 
1633. 
1634. 
1635. 
1636. 
1638. 
1643. 
1664. 
1673. 
1680. 
1682. 
1683. 
1689. 
1702. 
1732. 
1733. 
1744. 
1754. 
1763. 
1774. 
1775. 

1776. 
1777. 

1778. 



The West Indies discovered by Columbus. 

North America discovered by the Cabots. 

South America discovered by Columbus. 

Sebastian Cabot explored the eastern coast of North America. 

Da Gama reached India by way of the Cape of Good Hope. 

Florida discovered by Ponce de Leon. 

The Pacific Ocean discovered by Balboa. 

Discovery of the Mississippi by Pineda. 

Verrazzani explored the eastern coast of the United States. 

The St. Lawrence discovered by Cartier. 

De Soto began his explorations. 

The Huguenots began a settlement at Port Ro^'al. 

St. Augustine, Florida, settled. 

Voyage of Sir Francis Drake began. 

Jamestown, Virginia, settled by the English. 

Quebec founded by Champlain. 

The Hudson River discovered by Henrj^ Hudson. 

New Amsterdam (New York) settled by the Dutch. 

Negro slavery introduced into Virginia. 

The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth. 

Settlement of New Hampshire at Dover and Portsmouth. 

Boston settled b_v the Massachusetts Bay Company. 

Settlement at Windsor, Connecticut. 

Marj'land settled at St. Mary's. 

Settlement at Hartford, Connecticut. 

Roger Williams began the settlement of Rhode Island. 

Delaware settled by the Swedes. 

New England colonies formed a union. 

New Amsterdam surrendered to the English and became New York. 

Joliet and Marquette reached the Mississippi. 

Settlement of Charleston, South Carolina. 

La Salle discovered the Ohio, sailed down the Mississippi. 

Philadelphia founded by Wm. Penn. 

King William's War began in America. 

Queen Anne's War began in America. 

Washington w^as born in Virginia, February 22. 

Georgia settled at Savannah. 

King George's War began in America. 

The French and Indian War began. 

French lose their possessions in America. 

The first Continental Congress met in Philadelphia. 

The Revolutionary War began. 

Washington was elected Commander-in-Chief. 

The Declaration of Independence adopted. 

Surrender of Burgoj-ne. 

Washington's army went into winter quarters at Valley Forge. 

France acknowledged independence of United States. 



290 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 



1779. Victor}' of Paul Jones off the coast of England 

1780. .\niold plotted treason. 
Andre \vas executed as a spy. 

1781. Articles of Confederation ratified b^^ the states. 
Surrender of Cornvvallis at Yorktown. 

1783. Treaty of Peace sijjned at Paris. 

Washin^on resis^ned his commission. 
1787. Constitution of United States adopted by convention. 
1789. Constitution went into effect on the 4th of March. 

Washington inaugurated President. 

1791. Vermont admitted to the Union. 

1792. Kentucky admitted to the Union. 

The Colundjia River discovered by Capt. Gray. 

1793. The cotton gin invented hy Whitney. 

1796. Tennessee admitted to the Union. 

1797. John Adams inaugurated President. 

1799. Washington died at Moimt Vernon. 

1800. First meeting of Congress in Washington City. 

1801. Thomas Jefferson inaugurated President. 
• 1802. Ohio admitted to the Union. 

1803. Louisiana Territory purchased of France. 

1804. Expedition of Lewis and Clarke ascended the Missouri. 
1807. Fulton's steamboat ascended the Hudson. 

1809. James Madisan inaugurated President. 

1812. Louisiana admitted to the Union. 
War declared against Great Britain. 
Hull surrendered Detroit to the British. 

1813. Perry's victory on Lake Erie. 

1814. The American power loom put in operation. 
Public buildings in Washington burned b}' British. 
Treaty of Peace signed at Ghent. 

1815. Battle of New Orleans. 

1816. Indiana admitted to the Union. 

1817. James Monroe inaitgurated President. 
Mississip])i admitted to the Union. 

1818. Illinois admitted to the Union. 

1819. Florida purchased of Spain. 
Alabama admitted to the Union. 

1820. The Missouri Compromise passed. 
Maine admitted to the Union. 

1821. Missouri admitted to the Union. 

1824. La Fayette revisited the United States. 

1825. John O. Adams inaugurated President. 

1826. Death^of John Adam's and Thomas Jefferson (July 4). 

1827. First American raihvay opened. 

1829. Andrew Jackson inaugurated President. 

1832. South Carolina adojjted nullification ordinance. 

1836. Arkansas admitted to tlie Union. 

1837. Michigan admitted to the Union. 
Martin Van Buren inaugurated President. 

1841. William Henry Harrison inaugurated President, 
John Tyler iufiugurated President. 

1844. Magnetic telegraph came into use. 

1845. Florida admitted to the Union. 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 



291 



1846. 



1847. 
1848. 



1849. 
1850. 

1853. 
1854. 
1857. 
1858. 
1859. 
1860. 
1861. 



1862. 



1863. 



1864. 



1865. 



1866. 
1867. 



1868. 
1869. 



James K. Polk inavigurated President. 

Texas admitted to the Union. 

Congress declared that war existed Ijy act of Mexico. 

Oregon boundary treaty with Great IBritain. 

Iowa admitted to the Union. 

City of Mexico surrendered to General Scott. 

Discovery of Gold in California. 

Treaty with Alexico — territory gained. 

Wisconsin admitted to the Union. 

Zachar\' Ta3'lor inaugurated President. 

Millard Filhnore inaugurated President. 

California admitted to the Union. 

Franklin Pierce inaugurated President. 

The Kansas-Nebraska bill passed. 

James Buchanan inaugurated President. 

Minnesota admitted to the Union. 

Oregon admitted to the Union. 

Secession of South Carolina. 

Kansas admitted to the Union. 

Southern Confederacy formed at Montgomery. 

Abraham Lincoln inaugurated President. 

Fort Sumter fired upon. 

Battle of Bull Run. 

Seizure of Mason and Slidell. 

Forts Henr\' and Donelson taken. 

Battle of Shiloh, or Pittsburgh Landing. 

New Orleans captured. 

Seven-days' battles. 

Battle of Antietam. 

Battle of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. 

Emancipation Proclamation of President Lincoln. 

Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. 

Vicksburg, Mississippi, surrendered. 

Battle of Chickamauga. 

Battle of the Wilderness. 

Battle of Spotts\'lvania. 

Battle between the Kearsage and Alabama. 

Battle before Atlanta. 

Battle of Nashville, Tennessee. 

Nevada admitted to the Union. 

Sherman's March to the sea. 

Lee's army surrendered. 

President Lincoln assassinated. 

Jefferson Davis captured. 

Andrew Johnson inaugurated President. 

The Union armies disbanded. 

Thirteenth Amendment ratified. 

Atlantic telegraph laid. 

Reconstruction Acts passed by Congress. 

Nebraska admitted to the Union. 

Alaska purchased of Russia. 

Fourteenth Amendment ratified. 

General Grant inaugurated. 

Pacific Railroad completed. 



292 



CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 



1869. The Union restored. 

1870. Fifteentli Amendment ratified. 

1871. Burninj^ of Chiea^o. 

1876. Centennial celebration. 
Colorado admitted to the Union. 

1877. Railroad strikes and other troubles. 
Rutherford B. Ha^'es inaugurated President. 

1879. Resumption of specie payment. 

1880. Treaty with China. 

1881. Inauguration and death of James A. Garfield. 
Inauguration of Chester A. Arthur. 

1883. Civil-service reform. 

1885. Inauguration of (irover Cleveland. 

1886. Strikes and other labor disturbances. 
Earthquake at Charleston, South Carolina. 

1889. Inauguration of Benjamin Harrison. 

Commemoration of Washington's inauguration. 

(jreat flood and loss of life in the Conemaugh Valley, Pennsylvania. 
Washington, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Montana ad- 
mitted to the Union. 



GROWTH OF THE CITIES. 



Cities having- population of 40,000 or more, according to ISSO census. 



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1890 census will be added at as early a date as possible. 



294 



GROWTH OF THE STATES. 



GROWTH OF THE STATES. 

UNITED STATES CENSUS REPORTS, 1790 — 1890. 





1790. 1 1800. 1 1810. 


18S0. 


, 1830. 


1. Alabama 






127,901 
14,255 


309,527 
30,388 


2. Arkansas 






3. Californi.i 














5. Connecticut 


237,946 251,002 
59,096 64,273 


261,942 
72,674 


275,148 
72,749 


297,675 
76,748 
34,730 


7. Florida 


S. Georgia 

9. Idaho 


82,548 162,686 


252,433 


340,985 


516,823 


10. Illinois 




12,282 


55 1fi'> 


157 445 






5,641 


24,520 147,178 


343,031 


12. Iowa 




13. Kansas 








14. Kentucky 


73.677 220,955 


406,511 
76,556 
228,705 
380,546 
472.040 
4,762 


564,135 
152,923 
298,269 
407,350 
523,159 
8,765 


687,917 
215,739 
399,455 
447,040 
610,408 
31 639 


16. Maine 


96,540 
319,728 

378,787 


151,719 

341,548 
422,845 


17. Maryland 

18. Massachusetts 








21. Mississippi 


8,850 


40,352 
20,845 


75,448 
66,557 


136,621 
140,455 


23. Montana 






24. Nebraska 










25. Nevada 










26. New Hampshire.... 


141,885 183,858 
184,139 211,149 
340,120 589,051 
393,751 478,103 


214,460 
245,562 
959.049 
555,500 


244,022 

277,426 

1,372.111 

638,829 


269,328 

320,823 

1,918,608 

737,987 


28. New York 


29. North Carolina 

30. North Dakota 


31. Ohio 




45,365 


230,760 


581,295 


937,903 


32. Oregon 




33. Pennsylvania 

34. Rhode Island 

35. South Carolina 

36. South Dakota 


434,373: 602,365 

68,825 69,122 

249,073 345,591 


810,091 

76,931 

415,115 


1,047,507 

83,015 

502,741 


1,348,233 

97,190 

581,185 




35,691 105,602 


261,727 


422,771 


681 904 


38. Texas 4. 




39. Vermont 


85,425 154,465 
747,610 880,200 


217,895 
974,600 


235,966 
1,065,116 


280,652 
1,211 405 




41. Washington 




42. West Virginia 




















44. Wvoming 










District of Columbia 

Other Territories 


14,093 


24,023 


33,039 


39,834 










Total Population... 


3,929,214 


5,308,483 


7,239,881 


9,633,822 12,866,020 



GROWTH OF THE STATES. 



295 



GROWTH OF THE STATES. 

UNITED STATES CENSUS REPORTS, 1790 — 1890. 



1840. 



590,756 

97,574 



1860. 



1870. 



771,623 

209,897 

92.597 



309,978 370,742 
78,085 91,532 

54,477! 87,445 



964,201 
435,450 
379,994 
34,277 
460,147 
112,216 
140,424 



691,3921 906,185 1,057,286 



996,992 
484,471 
560,247 
39,864 
537,454 
125,015 
187,748 
1,184,109 



1880. 



1,262,505 
802,525 
864,694 
194,327 
622,700 
146,603 
269,493 

1,542,180 



476,183 

685,866 

43,112 



851,470 
988,416 
192,214 



779,828 
352,411 
501,793 
470,019 
737,699 
212,267 

383,702 



982,405 
517,762 
583,169 
583,034 
994,514 
397,654; 
6,077 
606,526 
682,044 



1,711,951 

1,350,428 
674,913 
107,206 

1,155,684 
708,002 
628,279 
687,049 

1,231,960 
749.013 
172,023 
791,305 

1,182,012 



284,574i 

373,306; 

2,428,921 

753,419 



317, 

489, 

3,097, 

869, 



976' 
555 
394 
039 



28, 

6, 

326, 

672, 

3,880, 

992, 



841 
857 
073 
035 
735 
622 



1,519,467 

1^724^033 
108,830 
594,398! 



1,980, 
13, 

2,311, 
147, 
668, 



329 
294 
786 
545 
507 



829,210 



291,948 
1,239,797 



30,945 



1,002, 
212, 
314, 

1,421, 



717 
592 
120 
661 



2,339, 
52, 

2,906, 
174, 
703, 



511 
465 
215 
620 
708: 



1,109 
604 
315 

1,596 
11 



,8011 
,215 
,098 
,318 
,594i 



305,391 



2,539,891 

1,680,637 

1,194,020 
364,399 

1,321,011 
726,915 
626,915 
780,894 

1,457,351 

1,184,059 
439,706 
827,922 

1,721,295 

20,595 

122,993 

42,491 

318,300 

906,096 

4,382,759 

1,071,361 
1,970 

2,665,260 
90,923 

3,521,951 

217,353 

705,606 

9,585 

1,258,520 
818,579 
330,551 

1,225,163 

23,955 

442,014 

1,054,670 



3,077,871 
1,978,301 
1,624,615 

996,096 
1,648,690 

939.946 

648,936 

934,943 
1,783,085 
1,636,937 

780,773 

1,131,597 

2,168,380 

39,159 

452,402 
62,266 

346,991 
1,131,116 
5,082,871 
1,399,750 
37,201 
3,198,062 

174,768 
4,282,891 

276,531 

995,577 

79,976 

1,542,359 

1,591,749 

332,286 

1,512,565 

75 116 

618,457 
1,315,497 



1890. 



43,712 



51,687 
72,927 



17,069,453 23,191,876 



75,080| 
138,6261 



131,700 
252,299 



177,624 
357,367 



31,443,321 38,558,371 50,155,783 



Per Cent- 
age, 
1870-80. 



26.63 
65.65 
54.34 

387.47 
15.86 
17.27 
43.53 
30.23 

117.41 
21.18 
17.71 
36.06 

173.35 
22.98 
29.30 
3.51 
19.72 
22.35 
38.24 
77.56 
36.67 
25.97 
90.13 

267.82 
46.53 
9.01 
24.83 
15.97 
30.65 
1,888.25 
19.99 
92.21 
21.60 
27.22 
41.09 

834.50 

22.55 

94.45 

.52 

23.45 

213.57 
39.91 
24.73 



♦ Combined population of North Dakota and South Dakota in 1860, 4,837. 



296 



INDEX. 



INDEX 



Acadians, removal of, 95. 
Adams, Samuel, 102, 103, 14-3. 
Adams, John, 103, 131, 143, 14-6, 14-7, 173 
Adams. John Quincy, 166, 171, 174-. 
Agriculture of country. 277. 
Alabama admitted, 16S. 
Alabama, sinking of, 240, 241. 
Alabama Claims. 260. 
Alaska, purchase of, 257. 
Alien and Sedition Laws, 147. 
Allen, Ethan. 107. 
Anarchists, the, 268. 
Anderson, Maj. Robert, 206, 242. 
Andersonville, prison at, 248. 
Andre, Major, 122. 
Andros seized, 59, 60. 
Antietam, battle of, 223, 224. 
Anti-slavery, paper, societies, 178. 
Appomattox, C. H., surrender at, 244. 
Arkansas admitted, 182. 
Arlington Heights and Alexandria occu- 
pied, 208. 
Arnold, Benedict, 122. 
Arthur, Chester A., 265, 266. 
Articles of Confederation, 128, 129. 
Atlanta taken, 236, 237. 
Atlantic discoveries, map, 24. 

Bacon's Rebellion, 42. 

Hailev, Colonel, 235. 

Baker, General, 212. 

Balboa, 20. 

Ball's Bluff, 212. 

Baltimore, Lord, 78, 79. 

Baltimore, city of, 159, 208. 

Bancroft, George, 181. 

Banks, General N. P., 233, 235. 

Bank, the I'nited States, 176, 183. 

Barbary States, 142, 148. 

Barber, James, 161. 

Barclay, Kobtrt, 73. 

Bates, Almena, 251. 

Beauregard, General, 206, 209, 217. 

Bee, (Jeneral, 228. 

Bell, John, 200. 

Beniis, Heights, 115. 

Bennington, Vt., battle of, 115. 

Berkeley, Sir William, 42. 

Berkeley, Lord John, 71. 

Bickerdvke, Marv A.. 252 

Big Bethel, engagement at, 209. 

Biorn ihccrn'), 9, lO. 

Birnev, James G., 187. 

Black Hawk, Chief, 178. 

Blaine, lames O., 267. 

Block, Adrian, 57. 

Blockade of southern ports, 208, 213. 

Body of Liberties, 59. 

Boone, Daniel, 1(>5. 

Booth, John Wilkes, 244. 



Boston, settlement at, 55; massacre, 
102; Tea Party, 103; Port Bill, 103. 

Boundaries of United States, northern, 
189; southern, 191. 

Braddock's expedition, 95, 96. 

Bragg, General, 225, 233, 236. 

Brandy wine, battle of, 117. 

Breckenridge, John C, 199. 

Brewster, Elder, .54. 

Brown, John, 197, 198. 

Brooklyn bridge completed, 266. 

Brvan. "Thomas B., 228. 

Bryant, William C, 181. 

Buchanan, lames, 197, 202, 205. 

Buell, General I). C, 217, 225. 

Buena Vista, battle of, 191. 

Bull Run. battles of, 209, 210, 223. 

Bunker Hill, battle of, 107, 108; monu- 
ment, 1 70. 

Burgovne, invasion of, 114, 115; surren- 
der, 116. 

Burnside's fleet, cut, 218. 

Burnside, General, 220, 224, 228. 

Kurr, Aaron, 142. 

Business failures, 184, 261 . 

Butler, General, 219. 239, 267. 

Byllinge, Edward, 71. 

Cabinet, the first, 141. 

Cabrillo, 25, 

Cabots,John and Sebastian, 18, 19,20,34. 

Calhoun, John C, 162, 175, 176, 184, 1S7. 

California ceded to United States, 191 ; 

gold, 192. 
Calvert, Leonard, 78, 79. 
Cameron, Simon, 251. 
Camden, battle of, 121. 

Carolinas. settlement of, great plan, 80, 81. 
Carteret, Sir George, 71, 73. 
Cartier, Jacques, 21, 34. 
Cartwright, Rev. Mr., 161. 
Carver, John. 5,3. 
Cass, Lewis, 194. 
Cassimere, first web of, 161. 
Census, 199, 140, 275; tables, 293-295. 
Centennial Exposition, 261, 262. 
Cemeterj-, National, at Gettysburg, 229. 

232. 
Cerro Gordo, battle of, 191. 
Charter Oak, 60. 

Charleston, S. C, 81, 121, 234, 242, 243. 
Cliancellorsville, campaign of, 228. 
Champlain, his ex])lorations, 86. 
Charles I., King of England, 55, 59, 78. 
Charles IL, King of England, 42, 48, 74, 

8(). 
Charles IX., King, 34. 
Chase, Salmon P., 264. 
Chesapeake, American frigate, 157. 
Cliicamauga, battle of, 233. 



INDEX. 



297 



Chicago fire, 260 ; riot, 263, 268. 

Chinese labor, 264. 

Christian and Sanitary Commissions, 227, 
24-9, 251. 

Churnbitsco, battle of, 191. 

Civil War, 206-244; what it decided, cost 
of, 246. 

Civil Service Reform, 266. 

Clarke. William, 151. 

Clay, Henry, 168,169,175,183,187,194. 

Clavborne, trouble \vith, 78, 79. 

Cleveland, Grover, 267, 270. 

Clift-Dwellers, 31. 

Clinton. Sir Henry, 119, 122, 124. 

Clinton, De Witt, 172. 

Coal, discoverv, i:se, 181, 182. 

Cold Harbor, battle of, 238, 239. 

Colfax, Schiiyler, 259. 

Colleges, William and Marv, 43 ; Colum- 
bia, 49; Harvard, 68; Yale, 68. 

Colonies, French, 34, 85,86; Spanish, 35 ; 
EneHsh, 36-45, 35,52-61,71-75,78, 79, 
80-84; Dutch, 46-49; Swedish, 77. 

Colonies, union of, 90, 94. 

Columbus, Christopher, 11-17; cut, 16. 

Commercial troulile after Revolution, 152. 

Compromises, 168, 175, 194. 

Conemaugh disaster, 272, 27.3. 

Confederation, articles of, 128, 129. 

Confederate States, 201 ; flag of, 208. 

Concord, Mass., 106. 

Connecticut, settlement of, 57-60. 

Constitution of United States, framing of, 
130; powers of government under it, 
131; amendments to, 147, 256, 260. 

Constitution, "Old Ironsides," fight with 
Guerriere (^e/j re air), 155. 

Continental Congress, the first, 103, 104. 

Continental Currencj-, 127. 

Cook, Captain, 97. 

Cooper, James Fenimore, 181.. 

Cooper, Peter, 262, 

Comwallis, Lord. 112, 121-124, 222. 

Cost of Civil War, 246. 

Cotton Gin, 145. 

Chronological Table, 289-292. 

Crown Point, 96. 

Cumberland and Congress, destruction of, 
220. 

Custer, General, 261. 

Da Gama, Vasco, 19, 21. 
Dana, R. H.. 181. 

Dakota, North, South, admitted, 275. 
Daniel, William, 267. 
Davis, Jeflerson, 201, 207, 236, 245. 
Decatur, Lieutenant, 149, 156. 
Decoration Day. 254. 
Dcerficld, attack on, 90, 91. 
De Kalb, Baron, 118, 121. 
Delaware, Lord, 39, 77. 
Delaware, settlement of, 77, 78. 
De Leon, Ponce, 20, 34. 
De Monts, at Port Royal, 85. 
Depcw, Chainicey AL, 272. 
De Soto, expedition of, 22-23. 
D'Estaing, Count, 120. 
Different nations, claims of, map, 87. 
Discovery, Smith's boat, 38. 
Disputed election of President, 262. 
Dix, Dorothea L., 251. 
19 



Dorchester Heights occupied, 109. 

Douglas, Stephen .\., 196, 200. 

Douglass, Frederick, 178, 179. 

Dover, attack on, 88. 

Draft riot in New York. 228. 

Drake, voyage of, 23, 25. 

Dred Scott Decision, 198. 

Dvipont, Admiral, 234. 

Duquesne, Fort, 96. 

Dustin, Mrs., 89. 

Dutch household, cut, 50. 

Earlj' days in the South, cut, 45. 

Early settlements, tnap, 39. 

Earlj', General, 239,240. 

Early home of Lincoln, cut, 199. 

Earthquake at Charleston, 269. 

Education and Literature, 181, 281. 

Eight-hour movement, 268. 

Elections, troops at, 263. 

Eliot, John, missionary, 62. 

Elizabeth, Queen, 23, 34. 

Emancipation Proclamation, 226, 227. 

EiTibargo .■\ct, 152. 

Emerson, Ralph Waldo, 181. 

Endicott, John, 55. 

England, conduct of, 154, 213. 

England and France, contests between, 

86, 97. 
English, William H., 265. 
Ericson, Leif, 9. 
Ericsson, Captain, 221. 
Erie Canal, opening of, 172, 17.3. 

Fair Oaks, battle of, 222. 

Faneuil Hall, 102, 112. 

Farragut, Admiral, 219, 241. 

Federal Hall, 132. 

Fenwick, John, 71. 

Ferdinand and Isabella, 13, 14, 17. 

Ferelo, 25. 

Field Hospital, cut, 243. 

Field, Cyrus W., 257. 

Fillmore, Millard, 194, 198. 

Finns, settlement by, 77. 

Fisher's Hill, battle' at, 239. 

Fisheries, the, 269. 

Fitch, John, 153. 

Five Forks, battle of, 244. 

Flag, our country's, 114. 

Flax plant, 160. 

Florida, discovered, 20; purchased, 167; 

admitted, 188. 
Floyd, John B., 207. 
Foote, Commodore, 217. 
Forrest. General, 236. 
Fort Pillow, massacre at, 236. 
Fox, George, 72. 
France, aid from, 118; trouble with, 146, 

147. 
Franklin, Benjamin, 94, 118, 128, 129, 

2S0. 
Fredericksburg, battle of, 224. 
Free Soil Party, 192, 194, 196. 
Freedmen's Bureau, 256. 
Fremont, General, 191, 197, 212, 223, 226. 
French in America, 34, 85, 97. 
French and Indians, 85, 88-97. 
Frolic, brig, 156. 
Frvc, Colonel, 93. 
Fulton, Robert, 152, 153. 



298 



INDEX. 



Fugitive Slave Law, 195. 

Gage, General, 105, 107. 

Garfield, James A., 265. 

Garner, Margaret, 195. 

Garrison, William I.ovd, 178, 179, 184. 

Gates, (Uneral, 115, 121. 

Georgia, settlement, 82 ; roval province, 
84. 

George II., King, 82. 91. 

George III., King, 112. 

Germantown, battle of, 117. 

Gettvsburg, battle of, 229 ; cemeterv at, 
229. 

Ghent, treaty at, 160. 

Gilbert, Sir Humphrey, 36. 

Gilmore, General, 242. 

Going to meeting in summer, cut, 67. 

Gold, excitement in Virginia, 35, 37; dis- 
covery of in California, 192. 

Goldsborough, Commodore, 220. 

Goldsboro, battle of, 243. 

Government, seat of, 143, 146 ; redeems 
its pledge, 264. 

Grant, I'lvsses S., 217,225,232,236,238, 
239, 244, 259, 267. 

Great Valley, settling, 163; mode of life, 
165; Boone, 165; market, 165; news- 
paper, 1<>5; boats, steamers, 165; Old 
World settlers, 165, 166. 

Great Western, steamer, 167. 

Great Eastern, steamer, 259. 

Greelev, Horace, 261, 262. 

Greene, General, 122, 123. 

Guerriere, English frigate, 155. 

Guilford, C. H., 123. 

Guiteau, Charles J., 265. 

Halleck, Fitz-Greene, 181. 

Halleck, General Henry W., 212. 

Hamilton, Alexander, 141-143, 176. 

Hamilton, William G , 271. 

Hancock, General W. S., 229,265. 

Hardee, General, 24.S. 

Harper's Ferry, 198, 206. 

Harrison, William Henry, 154, 157, 186. 

Harrison, Benjamin, 27(), 271, 272, 275. 

Hartford, settlement at, 57. 

Harvey, Cordelia A. P., 252. 

Hattefas Inlet, 212. 

Havana, 1 7. 

Hawthorne, Nathaniel, 181. 

Hayes, Rutherford B., 262, 263. 

Hendricks, Thomas A., 267. 

Henry and Donelson, forts, capture of, 217. 

Henry, Patrick, lOl. 103. 

Hennepin, l-'athi-r, explores sources of the 

Mississip])i, S6. 
Hessians, 113. 
Hoe, R. M., 193. 
Hoge, Jane C, 251. 
Holmes, Oliver Wendell, 181. 
Hood, General J. B., 237. 
Hooker, Thomas, 57. 

Hooker, General Joseph E., 228,229,234. 
Howard, General O. O.. 256. 
Howe, General, 109, 117, 119. 
Howe, Elias, 193. 
Hudson, Henry, 46, 47. 
Huguenots, French, 34, 35, 48, 80. 
Hull, General, 155. 



Hull, Captain Isaac, 155. 
Hunt, Jane, 192. 
Hussey, 182. 
Hutchinson, Annie, 60. 
Hutchinson, Thomas, 102. 

Illinois admitted, 168. 

Illumination on surrender of Cornwallis, 
123. 

Independence, Declaration of, 110; how 
received. 111. 

Indiana admitted, 166, 168. 

Indian hut, 26; babe in cradle, 28 ; burial 
ground on Mississippi, 30; families and 
tribes, map, 27. 

Indians, name, 15; life and customs, 26; 
occupations, 27-28; character, 29, in 
Virginia, 38, 41 ; in Massachusetts, 54; 
in New England, 62; in Georgia, 83; 
treatment of by French, 86 ; council 
with at Council Bluff's, 151. 

Indian Wars: Peqtiod, 58 ; King Philip's, 
63, 04; King William's, 88; Queen 
Anne's, 9(), 91 ; King George's, 91 ; 
French and Indian, 92-97; Creek, 15!S; 
Seminole, 167, 17S; Battle of Tijipeca- 
noe, 154; Black Hawk, 178; Siou.\ 
Massacre, 226; Modoc, 261; Siou.x, 
261. 

Inventions: art of printing, 12; astro- 
labe, 12; compass, 12; cotton gin, 
14.^; cylinder printing press, 193; 
Ketcham mower, 1 82 ; Manningmower, 
182; matches, 182; ocean telegraph, 
257-259, 289; plows, 277; power- 
looms, 161; pressed glass, 278; ])rint- 
ing press, 68; reapers, 182; sewing 
machine, 19.'?; steamboat, 152, 221; 
telcgraijh, 188; threshing machines, 
182; telephone, 264. 

Impeachment of President Johnson, 256. 

Improvements, internal, 183. 

Iowa admitted, 193. 

Iroquois Indians, 26, 94. 

Irving, Washington, 181. 

luka and Corinth, battles of, 225. 

Jackson, Andrew, 158,160,167,174,175, 
170, 178, 182. 

Jackson, General T. J., 222, 228. 

Jamaica, 17. 

Jamestown, settlement of, 37. 

James I., King, 30, 41. 

James II., King, 59. 

Java, frigate, 157. 

Jav, John, 141. 

Jefferson, Thomas, 141, 143, 147-152, 
173. 

Johnson, Andrew, 242, 255, 256. 

Johnston, General A. S., 217. 

Johnston, General Joseph E., 222, 232, 
236, 243. 

Joliet reaches the Mississippi, 86. 

Jones, Paul, commander of " Poor Rich- 
ard," 120, 121. 

Kansas-Nebraska Bill, 196. 

Kansas, civil war in, 197; admitted, 202. 

Kearsarge, V. S., ship, 241. 

Kearney, Philip H., 190, 191. 

Kentuckj' admitted, 143. 



INDEX. 



299 



Ketcham mower, 182. 

Kev, Francis S., 159. 

Kieft, 47, 4-8. 

King Philip's War, 63, 64. 

King, Rtil'us, 106. 

Knox, General Henry, 141. 

Kosciusko, Thaddeus, 118. 

Labor strikes, organizations, 268 ; wages, 
278-'9. 

Labrabor, discovery of bj- Cabot, 18, 19. 

La Fayette, 118, 124; his visit, 170. 

La Salle discovered the Ohio, 86. 

Lawrence, Captain, 157. 

Lee, General Charles, treacherj- of, 119, 
120. 

Lee, General Robert E., 222, 224, 228, 238, 
239 244. 

Leif the Lnckv, 9, 10. 

Lewis, Merriwether, 151, 189. 

Lexington, battle of, 105, 106. 

Liberty Bell, the, 111. 

Liberty Party, 187. 

Life in early days, Virginia, 43—45 ; New 
Amsterdam, 49—51 ; New England, 66— 
70; In the New Republic, 135-1 40. 

Lincoln, Abraham, 200, 204, 206, 207, 
226, 227, 228, 229, 232, 242, 244, 245. 

Li verm ore, Mary A., 251. 

Logan, John A. ,267. 

London and Plymouth companies, 36. 

Long Island, battle of, 112 ; Washing- 
ton's retreat from, 112. 

Longfellow, Henry W., 181. 

Lookout Mountains, battle of, 234. 

Louisburg captured and restored, 91, 96. 

Louisiana Purchase, 149. 

Lotiisiana admitted, 163. 

Lovejoy, Rev. Elijah P., 185. 

Lowell, Francis Cabot, 161. 

Lyon, General Nathaniel, 212. 

Macdonough, Commodore, 15S. 

Macedonian, British frigate, 156. 

McCormick, Cvrns H., 182. 

McDowell, Irvin, 209, 222. 

McClellan, General, 209, 221-224, 242. 

McClintock, Mary Ann, 192. 

Madison James, 153, 154. 

Magellan, voyage of, 21. 

Maine a part of Mass., 57 ; admitted, 168. 

Mann, Horace, 181, 195. 

Manning, inventor, 182. 

Manufacturers of country', 277, 278. 

Mariner's compass, 12. 

Marion, General, "Swamp Fox," 121. 

Marquette reaches the Mississippi, 86. 

Alary, Qtieen of England, 19. 

Maryland, settlement of, 78. 

Mason and Slidell, capture of, 215. 

Massachusetts, settlement of, 52—57. 

Massachusetts Baj' Colony, 55. 

Massasoit, .54, 63. 

Matches, friction, 182. 

Mavrtower, sailing of the, 52. 

Meade, General George G., 229, 236, 238. 

Menendez, 3.5. 

Merrimac and Monitor, battle between, 

220. 221. 
Mexico, war with, boundarv question, 

189; Palo Alto, 189; Monterey and 



Resacade la Palma, 190 ; Taylor's cam- 
paign, 190, 191 ; New Mexico and Cali- 
fornia taken, 191 ; Scott's campaign, 
191 ; surrender, 191 ; results, 191, 192. 

Mexican War, map ilUistrating, 190. 

Michigan admitted, 182. 

Minnesota admitted, 202. 

Minuet, Peter, 47. 

Minute Men, 104-106. 

Missionary Rid..;e, battle of, 234. 

Mississippi River, discovery of, 23; opened, 
233. 

Mississippi admitted, 168; restored, 259. 

Missouri Compromise, 168. 

Missouri admitted, 168; war in, 212. 

Mobile, capture of, 241. 

Modes of Travel, cut, 164. 

Monmouth, battle of, 119. 

Alonroe, James, 166—169; Monroe Doc- 
trine, 169. 

Montana admitted, 275. 

Montcalm, General. 97. 

Monterey, battle of, 190. 

Moody, Paul, 161. 

Mormons, 177. 

Morris, Robert, 113. 

Morse, Samuel, F. B., 188. 

Mott, Lucretia, 192. 

Mound-builders, 31-33 

Mounds at Marietta, Ohio, cut, 32. 

Mt. Vernon, 125, 130, 131, 145. 

Alovements of Armies in South and West, 
map, 216. 

Movements of Armj- of Potomac, map, 
214. 

Murfreesboro, battle of, 225. 

Napoleon, Emperor, 147, 149. 

Nashville, battle of, 237. 

National Road, opening of, 163. 

National Cemeteries, 253, 254. 

Navigation Acts, 99, 100. 

Nebraska admitted, 257. 

Nevada admitted, 245. 

New Amsterdam, life in 49; dwellings, 
furniture, 49 ; dress, 51 ; school-mas- 
ters, ministers, 51. 

New England, coming of Pilgrims, 52-53; 
government. 53 ; \vinter, 53,54; first 
crop, 54; treaty, 54; wealth, 55; colo- 
nies, 55-59; Puritans, .50 ; Pilgrims and 
Puritans unite, 56; Maine a part of 
Massachusetts, 57 ; Pequods, 58 ; Royal 
Province, 59; Connecticut, 57; Rhode 
Island, Andros, Prcvidence, religion, 
60; New Hampshire, Vermont, 61; 
Indians, 62-64; witchcraft, 64, 65; 
treatment of wrong-doers, 66 ; meeting- 
houses, church-going, 66; schools, 67; 
printing press, homes, 68 ; dress, train- 
ing, occupations, 69 ; amtisements, trav- 
eling, slavery, 70. 

New Hampshire, settlement of, 61. 

New Haven Colony, 58, 59. 

New Jersey, 71-73. 

Xewfovindland discovered, 19. 

New Mexico ceded to I'nited States, 191. 

New Orleans, 97; captures of, 160, 219. 
233. 

New Republic and its people : 

Population and territory, cities, 135; 



300 



INDEX. 



travel, 135; farm life, 136; mails antl 
newspapers, schools, lights and fuel, 
dress, 13S. 

New Sweden, 77. 

Newspapers, GS, 138, 165, 178. 181, L'82. 

New York, settlement of, -t6-51. 

Nina, one of Cohimbiis' vessels, 14. 

Northmen, legend of. 9-1 0. 

Northwest Territory. 163. 

Occuni, Samson, Indian Whitefiekl, C2. 

Ocean telegraph, 257-1:59. 

Oceans Joined bv Kail, 259, 260. 

Ogle, Mrs. H. M.. 273. 

Oglethorpe, James, 82-84. 

Ohio admitted, 153. 

Old Ironsides, poetry, 156. 

Omnibus Bill, 168. 

Opening lii-ic Canal, cut, 172. 

Orcharil Knob, capture of, 234.. 

Ordinance of 17.S7. 163. 

Oregon admitted, 2(t2. 

Orleans, steamer, 165. 

Osceola. Chief, 178. 

Otis, James, 101. 

Pacific Ocean discovered, 20. 

Pacific Coast explored, 25. 

Packenham, Oeneral, 160. 

Palo Alto, battle of, 189. 

Panic of 1837, 184-. 

Parris, Reverend, 64-, 65. 

Paris, treaty of, 97, 125. 

Patroons, 47. 

Peale, Angeliee, 132. 

Pemberton, CTcncral, 232, 233. 

Peninsular Campaign, 221. 

Penn, William, 72. 75, 76. 

Pennsvlvania. 74-, 75. 

Pendleton, Oeorge H., 242. 

Pequod War, 58. 

Periton, Daniel, 273. 

Perrv, Olive H., 157. 

Perrv, Matthew C, 191. 

Perry vi'ile, battle of, 225. 

Petersburg, siege of, 239, 244. 

Philadelphia founded, 75. 

Philadelphia, V. S. frigate. 149. 

Philanthropic and reform work, 2.82. 

Phillips, Jolin I)., 182. 

Phillips, Wendell, 178, 179, 195. 

Philip, King, 6,3, 64. 

Pickens, Colonel, 121. 

Pickett, Ocncral, 229; cut, 230, 231. 

Pierce, Franklin, 196. 

Pilgrims, coming of, .52— ."5. 

Pineda, Alonzo de, discovers Miss. R., 23. 

Pinta, one of Columbus' vessels, 14, 15. 

Pinzon brothers, 14. 

Pitcher, Mollv, 120. 

Pitt, William, 96. 

Plan of war in 1862, 215; 1864,236. 

Pocahontas, 38. 

Poe, Edgar Allan, 181. 

Polk, James K., 187, ISO. 

Pope, (ieneral. 223. 

Porto Rico, 17. 

Port Roval, lUigucnots at, .34. 

Port Royal lintrancj, forts at, 212. 

Porter. Commodore, 225, 235. 

Post Offices, 280. 



Powderly, Tcrrencc V., 269. 
I'ower-loom, invention of, 161, 167. 
Powhatan. Chief, 38. 
Preseott, William H.. 181. 
Prescott, Colonel, 107. 
President, first. 131-132. 
Princeton, battle of, 113-115. 
Printing, art of, 12; first press, 68; oth- 
ers, 193. 
Pritchard, Colonel, captures Davis, 245. 
Proclamations (;f President Johnson, 255. 
Providence, settlement of, 60. 
Public Debt, 247. 
Pueblo, or Village Indians, 31. 
Pulaski, Count. 118, 120. 
Puritans, 56, 57, 58, 60, 63, 67. 
Purmount, Philemon, 67. 
Putnam, General, 107. 

Quakers, 44, 57, 60, 71, 72. 
(Juebec, founded, S(), 90, 96, 97. 
(Questions to be settled after Civil War, 

255. 
Quincj-, Mass., first railroad from, 173. 

Railroad, the first, and what the people 

thought, 173; connecting two oceans, 

259; riots, 263, 266. 
Raleigh, Sir Walter, 35. 
Raleigh, K. C, entered bv Federal armj-, 

243. 
Randolph, Edwin, 141. 
Rapidan, battle of, 238. 
Reconstruction Measures, 256. 
Red Eagle, Chief, 158. 
Red River lixpedition, 235. 
Resaca de la I'alma, battle of, 1.89. 
Resources of Country, 276. 
Revere, Paul, his ride, 105, 127, 274. 
Revolutionary War, causes of, 99-104, 

105-12.5; map illustrating, 106. 
Rhode Island, settlement of, 60. 
Rice plant introduced, 81. 
Richmond, capture of, 244. 
Riders, the three, picture of, 274. 
Roehambcau, Count, 123, 124. 
Rosecrans, General, 200, 225, 233. 
Riim imported into Georgia, 8.3. 
Rumsey, James, 153. 

Safi"ord, Mary J., 252. 

St. Augustine, 35. 

St. John. John P., 267. 

SaKm Witchcraft, 64, 65. 

Samoset, Chi-f, 54. 

San Juan d' Plloa, 191. 

Santa Anna, General, 190, 191. 

San Salvador, 15. 

Santa Maria, one of Columbus' vessels, 

14. 
Sarapis, British frigate, 121. 
Savannah, first steamer to cross .\tlantic, 

167. 
Savannah, capture of, 120, 237. 
Sault Ste. Marie, 86. 
Scheneetadv destroved, 88. 
Schotield, General, 243, 272. 
Schools, 43, 49, 62,67; first girls', 75, 84 ; 

normal, 181. 
Scott, Winfield, 158, 175,100,206,209. 
Secession of Southern States, map, 201. 



INDEX. 



301 



Seminole Indians, 167, 178. 

Semmes, Captain Raphael, 241. 

Seven days' battles, i;23. 

Sewall, Judge, 65. 

Seward, William H., 257. 

Seymour, Horatio, 259. 

Shannon, British Irigate, 157. 

Shays, Daniel, 12S. 

Shenandoah, cruiser, 241. 

Sheridan, Philip H., 239, 244. 

Sherman, General W. T., 225, 233. 236, 
237, 242, 243. 

Shields, General, 223. 

Shiloh, battle of, 217, 219. 

Sibley, General H. H., 226. 

Sinking of Alabama, cut, 240. 

Sioux Massacre, 226. 

Sirius, steamer, 167. 

Slavery, introduction of, 40 ; in New Eng- 
land, 70 ; in Carolina, 81 ; in Georgia, 
83; in 1790, 139, 140; Jefterson's idea 
of, 149, 152; Ordinance of 1787, 163 
demand for slaves to work in cotton 
167; feeling in North, 168; Missouri 
Compromise, 168; slave dealers, 168 
anti-slavery paper, 178; mob spirit 
184, 185; right of petition denied, 185 
Texas, Liberty party, 187; Wilmot 
Proviso, Free Soil party, 192 ; Compro- 
mise of 1850, 1 94 ; Fugitive Slave Law, 
underground railwav, Kansas-Nebras- 
ka Bill, 1 96 ; Dred Scott decision ; John 
Brown, 198; Emancipation Proclama- 
tions, 225-227; abolished, 255, 256. 

Smith, Captain John, 37, 38. 

Smith, Joseph, leader of Mormons, 177. 

Soldier's Psalm of Woman, poem, 252. 

Spencer, General, 107. 

Spottsylvania, battle of, 238. 

Squatter Sovereignty, 196. 

Soldiers in prison, 248. 

Stamp Act, 101. 

Standard time, 266. 

Standish, Miles, 53; sword, pot, platter, 
54. 

Stanton, Elizabeth Cadv, 192. 

Stanton, Edwin M., 251, 257. 

Stark, General, 107; at Bennington, Vt., 
115. 

Starving time, 38. 

State Rights, 175. 

States at close of Revolutionary War, 
claims, map, 136. 

States return to the Union, 2.56. 

Steamboat, the first, 152, 153; first to 
cross Atlantic, 167. 

Steele, John, 57. 

Stephens, Uriah S., 268. 

Stephens, Alexander H., 201. 

Steuben, Baron, 118, 119. 

Stony Point, 120. 

Stowe, Harriet Beecher. 195. 

Stockton, Commodore, 191. 

Stuyvesant, Peter, 48, 78. 

Sullivan, General, 26. 

Sumner, Charles, 195. 

Sximter, General, 121. 

Sumter, fort, firing on, 206, 242. 

Sutter, Captain, 192. 

Swedes, settlement by, 77. 



Taney, Judge, 198. 

Tappan, Lewis, 185. 

Tariff, 162, 169, 269, 270. 

Tarleton, General, 122. 

Tavlor, General Zachary, 189, 190, 194. 

Tea, tax on, 102. 

Tecumseh, Chief, 154, 157, 158. 

Telegraph, invention of, 188. 

Telephone, invention of, 264. 

Temperance societies, 173,174. 

Tennessee admitted, 143. 

Terry, General, 243. 

Territorial acqtiisitions, map, 150 ; state- 
ment of, 257 ; growth, 275. 

Test questions and exercises, 2S5-2SS. 

Texas, annexation of, 187 ; admitted, 193; 
restored, 259. 

Thomas, General George H., 233, 237. 

Ticonderoga, 96, 107, 108, 115. 

Tilden, Samuel J., 262. 

Tippecanoe, battle of, 154. 

Tobacco, cultivation of, 40, 78. 

Topics for review, 98. 126, 203, 283. 

Tories, 122 

Transportation, 279. 

Travel, modes of, 280; cut, 164. 

Trent, English steamer, 215. 

Trenton, N. J., battle of, 112, 113. 

Tripoli, war with, 148, 149. 

Tyler, John, 186, 187. 

"Uncle Tom's Cabin," 195. 

Underground Railroad, 195, 196. 

Union refugees, cut of, 247 ; nur.ses, 251. 

Union restored, 259. 

United States, frigate, 156. 

United States Bank, 142, 176. 183. 

Valley Forge, 117, 118. 

Van Buren, Martin, 183, 184, 192. 

Vera Cruz, battle of, 191. 

Vermont, 61 ; admitted, 143. 

Verrazzani, voyage of, 21, 34. 

Vespucci, Amerigo, 19, 20. 

Vicksburg, capture of, 232. 

Vinland, lo. 

Virginia, original extent, settlement, 36 ; 
Jamestown founded, 37; Smith, 37,38; 
starving time, 38, 39 ; tobacco — as 
money, slavery, Indians, 40 ; Royal 
Province, 41 ; Bacon, 42; homes, schools, 
43 ; sports, travel, religion, 44 ; dress, 
ceremony, 45, 46 ; government, 39, 41 ; 
restored to the Union after Civil War, 
259. 

Walker, John, 182. 

Ward, Nathaniel, 59. 

Ward, General, 107. 

War of 1812, map illustrating, 155; 
causes of, 154; Hull's svirrender, 155 ; 
victories on ocean, 155, 156 ; privateers, 
156; Perrj-'s victory, 157; battle of 
Thames, 157, 158; Creeks, Lundy's 
Lane, Lake Champlain, 1.58, 159; 
Washington in hands of English, Balti- 
more attacked, 1 59 ; New Orleans, 160 ; 
peace, effects, 1 60. 

Warren, General Joseph, 108. 

Warren, General G. K., 244. 

Washington admitted, 275. 



302 



INDEX. 



Washington, Gcorpe, life, 130; mission 
yii, 93, 103: commander-in-chief, 108 
at Boston, 100; at Uong Island, ll'J 
at Trenton, 112 seeks aid. 113; at 
Princeton, 113. 114- ; at Brandywine, at 
Germantown, at Valley Forge, 117; at 
Monmouth, 119; at Vorktown, 124-; 
end of war, 125; return to Mt. Vernon, 
125; in constitutional convention, 130 ; 
president inauguration, 131—133; full- 
page cut of, 134-, 1+4; administration, 
141-153; living, style of, 143; death, 
145 ; one hiindredth anniversary of 
inauguration, 271 ; monument, 266. 

Washington, Martha, cut, 132; sketch, 
133. 

Washington, D. C, in hands of English, 
159. 

Wasp, American sloop-of-\var, 156. 

Wavne, General, " Mad Anthonv," 120. 

Webster, Noah, 181. 

Webster, Daniel, 183, 184, 195. 

Wesley, John and Charles, 83. 

West V'irginia saved to Union, 209 ; ad- 
mitted, 245. 

■West, A. M., 267. 

Wethersfield, Conn., 58. 

Whitefield, George, S3, 84. 



Whitnev, Kli, 145, 167. 
Whittier, John G., 179, 181, 272. 
Wilderness, battle of, 238. 
Wilkes, Captain, 215. 
William III., 8S. 
Williams, Koger, 56, 58, 60. 
Williams, John, 91. 
Williamsburg, battle of, 222. 
Wilmot I'rovist), 192. 
Wilson's Creek, battle of, 212. 
Wilson, Hcnrv. 2(51. 
Winchester, battle of. 239. 
Winslow, Cai)tain, 241. 
Winthrop, John, 55. 
Winthrop, John, Jr., 59. 
Wisconsin admitted, 193. 
Wolfe, General, 96, 97. 
Woman's rights convention, 192. 
Women of the South, 253. 
Worden, lieutenant, 221. 
Wright, Martha C, 192. 
Writers, American, 180, 181. 
Writs of Assistance, 99, 100. 

York, Duke of, 48, 61, 72, 78. 
Yorktown, siege of, 123, 124; poem, 124., 

222. 
Young, Brigham, Mormon leader, 177. 



